


Scraps of Life

by Rhynne



Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
Genre: Blood, Friendship, Gen, Natsume can't stay out of trouble, Slight mystery, The usual youkai will all appear, canon-typical creepiness, kidnappings, natsume protection squad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2019-07-06
Packaged: 2019-08-28 14:26:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16725126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhynne/pseuds/Rhynne
Summary: The first disappearence is a misfortune. The second is a kidnapping. By the third? Well...In which a terrifying youkai is unleashed, things go wrong, and of course it's up to Natsume to fix it. But this time, he has help.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> In the midst of the holiday madness and finals, my brain decided it would be a good idea to write a new fanfic. But not just any fanfic, no, it had to be an epic long story stretching over multiple chapters. And I haven't properly watched the anime or read the manga in almost a year. What am I doing.  
> We'll see how this goes, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> (This story was partially inspired by Finding Home by darkcyan, which is an amazing fic far superior to this one that you should definitely check out if you haven't already!)

Natsume laid a wet towel over Touko’s forehead as he knelt beside her futon.

“Thank you, Takashi-kun.” She offered him a soft smile. “I promise I can manage for a day, this is just a little cold! You should be more worried about yourself right now; it’s about time for school, isn’t it?”

“Ah- yeah. Is… is there anything else you need before I go?” Natsume asked uncertainly.

Touko lifted up a hand and gently laid it on Natsume’s cheek for a moment. “I’ll just be here resting and taking care of myself, don’t worry.”

“A-alright then. I’m heading out,” Natsume murmured as he stood and picked up his bag.

“Mm, have a good day,” Touko said, eyes crinkling at the corners.

Natsume left her room and grabbed a neatly wrapped bento box off the counter as he hurried to the entrance. Nyanko Sensei was already sitting there waiting for him as he tugged on his shoes and slid open the door. The spring air outside was cold and crisp, and a few brave pink blossoms were just beginning to appear on otherwise-bare sakura trees around the property. 

Nyanko Sensei quickly fell into step beside the boy as the two set off down the road. The morning was quiet, with only the sounds of wind rustling though trees, a few birds, and the occasional jingle of Nyanko’s bell to break the silence. Natsume caught a flicker of movement in the corner of his eye as a solitary ayakashi swept across a street between two houses.

“I hope Touko-san will be ok.” Natsume said at length, brow slightly furrowed with concern.

Nyanko Sensei, now trotting along the top of a low stone wall, eyed Natsume for a moment. “You worry too much. She’ll be fine,” he said dismissively.

“Yeah, probably… but you really should care more for the person who feeds you.” Natsume jabbed.

Nyanko Sensei made an indignant noise, but no further comment.

Snippets of conversation and bursts of laughter made their way to Natsume’s ears as the pair drew closer to the school gates. In unspoken agreement, Nyanko Sensei broke off and bounded into a cluster of bushes by the roadside. Natsume knew he’d stay in the area. 

“Oyy, Natsume!” Nishimura’s voice rang out from his right.

“Nishimura- and Kitamoto, good morning,” Natsume greeted as the energetic teen sprinted up to him.

“Morning, Natsume.” Kitamoto caught up at a more sedate pace. The two new arrivals soon filled the spot Nyanko Sensei had occupied moments before, and Nishimura immediately picked up a rant about the recent weather.

“It’s just been so cold lately though!” Nishimura whined, slumping a bit as he walked. “I swear it’s been colder these past few days than even at the end of winter. Like, c’mon, it’s spring already.” He angled his head up at the sky to shout at the overhanging clouds. “Spring! Warmth! Hurry up!”

Natsume stifled a laugh as Kitamoto sighed. “You’re just going to have to deal with it.”

Nishimura scowled at his longtime friend and descended into a stream of muttered complaints. The three made their way into the school building, swapping out their shoes before joining the rush of students heading to their classrooms.

The group split up in front of Nishimura and Natsume’s classroom.

“We’ll catch you at lunch!” Nishimura called out at Kitamoto continued down the hall.

“Yeah, I’ll be on the roof.” Kitamoto lifted a hand without looking back.

\--~~--

“Good morning everyone,” Nomiya Sensei said as he situated himself behind the head desk. “I’ll be taking attendance first… ah, Kimura-kun won’t be coming in today, his mother called to inform me that he’s sick. It seems there’s a bug going around, so make sure you all take precautions against it. Now…”

Natsume tuned Nomiya Sensei out as the teacher went down the attendance list, allowing his thoughts to wander until the lesson began. A few minutes in, a clinking noise at the window caught his attention. Natsume blinked. There was a single line of chain that dropped from somewhere above, the end of which was tapping against the glass in sync with the wind. Each of the small, fat links gleamed gold as they shifted in the dull light outside.

As subtly as he could, Natsume glanced at the desks in front of and behind him, but their occupants seemed unbothered by the out-of-place object. Well. It was probably from a youkai then. He really hoped it wouldn’t cause any trouble. Natsume turned away and did his best to avoid staring at it for the rest of his classes. 

\--~~--

When lunch break rolled around, Nishimura and Natsume immediately headed for the roof. As they made their way up the final staircase, Natsume slowed to a stop as a realization hit him. The strange chain from outside his window had been dangling from the rooftop. 

“Natsume?” Nishimura paused to look back.

“Ah, sorry. I just… thought of something.”

Now with far more trepidation, Natsume climbed the final steps and pushed though the door after Nishimura. A figure perched on the top of the chain link fence that enclosed the roof immediately drew his eye. It was dressed in a long, ragged black robe with a line of gold that wrapped around its body several times before dropping down to vanish over the edge. A wide hood obscured its face, but did not hide the single curved horn that poked out from just underneath.

It had been facing out, looking over the town, but as the door closed behind the two boys, it turned its head in an impossible rotation to look at them. Then, the figure stood- and, tilting backwards, quietly slipped off the edge.

“Ah!-“ Natsume cut off his shout, and Nishimura looked at him curiously.

Forcing himself not to run in front of his friend, Natsume made his way to the fence and scanned the ground, not really sure what he was expecting to see- but there was nothing. The youkai had vanished.

“Are you sure you’re ok?” Nishimura questioned from behind him.

“Yeah… I thought I saw something fall off the roof.” Natsume smiled weakly. “I guess it was nothing though.”

“Huh.”

Nishimura stared suspiciously for a moment longer, before his typical cheer reasserted itself. “Well, I’m starved! What did Fujiwara-san make for you today?” 

His words were accompanied by a few grasping motions at Natsume’s bento box. Natsume not-so-surreptitiously scooted away from the other boy.

“Did you not bring your own lunch again?”

“I woke up late, so all I had time for was a convenience store sandwich! Pleeeaase, Natsume?”

Natsume covered his lunch with a hand. “No, I need my protein.”

Nishimura’s desperate lunge was interrupted by the timely arrival of Kitamoto.

“Nishimura, are you stealing other people’s lunches again?” Kitamoto admonished.

“I’m starving, you gotta help me Acchan,” Nishimura moaned dramatically.

“It’s your own fault for not getting up early enough to make a proper meal.” Kitamoto sighed with the put-upon air of someone who has had the same conversation a hundred times before.

As Nishimura pouted, Natsume took one final glance around the rooftop, before relaxing and joining Kitamoto in the fight to protect the other’s lunch.

\--~~--

An icy rain had just begun to sprinkle down as the three boys stood under the awning of the school entrance, staring dismally out at the unfortunate weather. Natsume took the opportunity to scan the grounds without appearing too suspicious. The chain-ayakashi had made no further appearance, but Natsume was still cautious. Beside him, Nishimura was bemoaning his lack of an umbrella.

“We should probably just run for it now,” Kitamoto decided somewhat resignedly. “It looks like it’ll only get worse. Nishimura has weekend cram school tomorrow, but could we meet up at your house on Sunday for a study session?”

Natsume considered it for a moment. “Touko-san is actually sick right now, so I don’t know if that’s a good idea… I’ll ask her if she’s better by tomorrow.”

“Of course, don’t worry about it. It’s not a big deal anyway. I’ll see you on Monday at least?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you later,” Natsume said pulling his coat tighter around himself in preparation for the inevitable run home.

Nyanko Sensei leapt off the school gate wall to join him as Natsume jogged out. The drizzle of rain was quickly gaining force, and Natsume picked up his pace. Nyanko was strangely uncomplaining as they speed walked through the freezing weather. It wasn’t until the pair was nearly home, both dripping wet, that he spoke up.

“Natsume. Did you see any unusual youkai today?”

Natsume paused. “Umm… yeah, actually. There was a youkai wrapped in a gold chain on the roof for half the day. It left when we went up there for lunch though. Was… was it important?”

They turned onto the small stone path leading up to the house.

“Hm. Maybe, maybe not. I’ve been feeling a strange presence all day. I saw that youkai though, and I don’t think it was the one causing it…” Nyanko Sensei mused. “Either way, you should be careful. I don’t want to have to bother rescuing you when it’s this cold, brat.”

“Hey, I can take care of myself just fine.”

Nyanko gave him a Look.

Natsume sighed. “Tell me if anything changes?” he said as he slid open the door, doing his best to shake the water out of his hair. “I’m back.”

Nyanko Sensei merely huffed in response. Natsume hurried to the hall closet to grab a towel for both of them. It struck him how eerily quiet the house was without all of Touko’s general bustle. That thought had Natsume running to check on her the moment he could move without leaving puddles of water on the floor. A peek into Touko’s room revealed her quietly asleep, still tucked into the futon with the cloth lying over her forehead.

Not wanting to disturb her, Natsume carefully backed out and snuck up the stairs to his room. Even Nyanko Sensei was making an effort to walk lightly. He settled down to study his homework while Nyanko curled up on a warm pillow in the corner.

An hour or so later falling darkness began interfering with his ability to see the problems on the page, so Natsume made his way the kitchen to see if he could figure out dinner. His cooking skills were certainly nowhere near as good as Touko’s, but he could manage a quick stir-fry and a bowl of chazuke easily enough.

Just as Natsume was preparing to take his creation to Touko, he heard the sounds of Shigeru’s return.

“I’m home,” the man called out. “Takashi-kun, are you already back?”

Natsume poked his head out the kitchen doorway. “Oh, welcome back.”

“Ah, thank goodness.”

Natsume frowned for a moment at the unusual response, but Shigeru was already continuing.

“How is Touko doing? I assume she’s still in bed if you’re doing the cooking?”

Natsume collected the chazuke from its place on the counter. “She was sleeping last I checked… I was just about to take this to her.”

“Ah… well, thank you for taking such good care of her, Takashi-kun.” Natsume ducked his head, a faint blush staining his cheeks. “I’ll take care of this.” Shigeru gently lifted the bowl from Natsume’s hands.

“Um… I also made a stir-fry if you’re hungry.”

Shigeru smiled. “Sounds good. I’ll be right back.”

\--~~--

“So Takashi-kun,” Shigeru started, scooping up some rice. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

He took a sip of his beer, seemingly gathering his thoughts. “Earlier today a little girl disappeared from in front of the convenience store across town. The police suspect it could be a kidnapping.”

“Oh, is that why you were worried…” Natsume murmured.

“What was that?”

“Ah, nothing.”

“One of my colleagues called in sick today, so I took his place making a delivery. I saw some police outside the convenience store en route, so I stopped to ask what had happened.” Shigeru shook his head.  
“Apparently the girl’s mother had left her outside to wait for a few minutes, but when she left the store, her daughter was gone.” He dropped into thoughtful silence for a while, and Natsume made no interruption.

“We can only hope the child simply ran off and they’ll find her soon. That poor mother.” He sighed sadly.

“Shigeru?” Touko’s soft voice drifted from down the hall.

“Ah- looks like I’m up again,” Shigeru chuckled, swiftly transferring his plate to the sink. “Just be careful when you’re out in town, ok?”

“I will,” Natsume reassured him.

\--~~--

Soon after Shigeru had gone, Natsume climbed the stairs back to his room with a plate of leftover stir-fry in hand. 

“Sensei, I brought some dinner if you’re interested.”

Nyanko cracked an eye open to glare at Natsume from his comfortable laze before grumpily hauling himself up and over the food.

“You seem distracted,” Nyanko commented.

“Huh? Oh… a girl apparently disappeared earlier today. I guess I was just thinking it might have something to do with a youkai?”

Nyanko scrunched up his nose. “Doubtful.” He said around a mouthful of food. “Unless she could See something, it’d be too difficult and too troublesome to just kidnap a random brat. And if she could see, any youkai that had the capacity to take her would’ve just eaten her on the spot. Probably.”

“That’s not exactly comforting, Sensei.”

Nyanko flicked a final piece of meat into the air before gulping it down. Trotting back over the pillow and curling up, he left one bright gold eye open to observe Natsume. “Does it really bother you that much?”

“No… it’s probably nothing. Just with your warning from earlier and all…” Natsume trailed off.

“Hmm.” Nyanko closed his eye and rolled over.

“I hope Touko-san gets better soon too.”

The lucky cat in the corner offered no response, but the boy knew he’d heard anyway.

As Natsume drifted off to an uneasy sleep, he pushed thoughts of the missing girl to the side. It was probably just paranoia anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Natsume was woken from a fitful sleep by a rude prodding to his face. Blearily, he opened his eyes to see Nyanko Sensei hovering over him with a still-upraised paw.

“Oy brat, wake up. You have a visitor,” The lucky cat huffed.

“What?” Natsume dragged himself to a sitting position, and his gaze landed on the window. “Uwah!”

Misuzu’s giant face was near pressed against the glass, with one unblinking eye staring in. Natsume scrambled to his feet.

“Natsume-dono, good morning,” Misuzu greeted.

“Misuzu-san, what are you doing here this early?”

The looming youkai shifted slightly, bells jingling. “I bring news, and a request. An ayakashi has arrived from the north, and is asking to meet with you. Normally I wouldn’t acquiesce so easily, but I have heard of this ayakashi before… he is an ancient master of sealing and binding spells, and has offered us important information should we choose to visit him. Will you come?”

“Ahh…” Natsume glanced at Nyanko Sensei, who merely turned his nose up. “I… I guess. Was that the news or the request?”

Misuzu’s amused hum rumbled through the still air. “That was the request. The news is not much, but I will tell you once we are on our way.”

“Alright… can it wait a little while longer? I want to eat, and make sure Touko-san is okay.” Natsume explained.

“Very well. I will be in the forest across from the rice fields.” Misuzu agreed, and without further ado, took off in a rush of wind and bells.

Natsume sighed, and set about getting dressed.

\--~~--

When Natsume arrived in the kitchen downstairs, he was greeted with the welcome sight of Touko sitting at the breakfast table, wrapped in several warm blankets. Shigeru was just setting a cup of steaming tea in front of her, and a pan of something was sizzling on the stove.

“Touko-san! How are you feeling?” Natsume inquired anxiously. 

“Ah, good morning Takashi-kun. Still a bit under the weather I’m afraid, but much improved from yesterday,” Touko said with a weak, but warm smile.

“That’s good,” Natsume said, relieved. “Will it be okay if I go out today? I wanted to meet up with a... friend.”

“Of course! Shigeru will be at home today, so you don’t have to worry about me.”

Shigeru chuckled. “I’ll be here taking care of your every need, Touko.” She laughed softly as well. Turning back to Natsume, he said, “You go have fun Takashi-kun. Take as long as you want.”

Natsume felt a small curl of warmth in his chest as he sat down to his breakfast and thanked the two of them.

After putting his dishes in the sink, Natsume quickly gathered up his backpack and coat. “Nyanko Sensei!” he called out. A disgruntled meow echoed from the kitchen. A few moments later, the lucky cat in question appeared, still licking the remaining breakfast crumbs from his whiskers.

“Ready?” Natsume asked.

“I’ve been ready this whole time, brat,” Nyanko responded. “Now let’s hurry up and get this over with, I wanna get back to my heated pillow.”

They stepped out into the frosted morning and headed for the fields.

\--~~--

As Natsume and Nyanko Sensei drew in sight of the forest, Misuzu, who was waiting just past the treeline, rose up to meet them. His head towered above the leafy canopy.

“Natsume-dono,” the giant youkai acknowledged. “Shall we?”

Natsume simply nodded, more than a little anxious, and fell into step behind Misuzu.

“So… what was the news you had for me?” Natsume asked.

“Ah yes. A rather… uncomfortable presence has made itself known recently. It is not certain, but judging by the sudden appearance and its feel, I would guess that a powerful and malevolent youkai has been unsealed or been released from a contract.” Misuzu answered.

“I would advise you to take extra precautions for both yourself and the Book.” He added after a pause. “The youkai we are meeting today likely has come in response to this change, and he will hopefully be able to help.”

“Alright.” Natsume frowned slightly. “Sensei told me that something was up, but the unsealed youkai bit is new.”

“We should learn more after we talk with our visitor.” Misuzu said thoughtfully. “The meeting place is at the base of the mountain, and I believe it would be best if we flew there to save time.” He informed them. 

Nyanko Sensei huffed. “Oh honestly. More trouble.”

His voice deepened as he shifted to his unsealed form. “Let’s hurry up and get this over with, Natsume.” Madara growled.

Natsume clambered on to Madara’s back, and the two youkai plus rider took off into the icy morning air. The cold wind nipped at Natsume’s unprotected face as they sped up, and he leaned as far down as he could into Madara’s thick fur. 

The flight quickly brought them to their destination, and they touched down in the shadow of the looming mountain. The air felt strangely still and heavy.

“This way,” Misuzu said, tossing his head to the left. As they walked towards the mountain, the reason they had landed away from the meeting place quickly became clear. The already grey light of the cloudy day was turned to near-darkness under the impenetrable forest canopy. Thankfully, it was only a couple minutes before a small structure came into sight.

The building turned out to be an overgrown and rather dilapidated shrine. It had two wide steps in the front, and the interior appeared to be just big enough for a human to squeeze inside. There wasn’t much of interest, and Natsume’s attention soon drifted over to the side. He started as he suddenly realized that a figure was standing there, hidden by the undergrowth and low light.

“Sarigi-sama,” Misuzu announced, dipping his head.

“Thank you, Misuzu-sama.” The so-named Sarigi gave a slight bow before stepping farther into the light, where Natsume was able to get a proper look.

“Oh! You’re from school yesterday…”

“Greetings, Natsume-sama. It’s a pleasure to meet you properly this time.” Sarigi bowed again.

“Ah, yes, same…” Natsume said uncertainly.

“I must also apologize for yesterday, I believe I startled you on the rooftop.” The youkai continued. "But my curiosity got the better of me and I didn’t want to wait."

"It's fine...?"

"Now as for why I am here... Misuzu-sama should have already informed you of this, but recently a powerful seal has broken and unleashed a dangerous ayakashi. I am here to attempt to catch and reseal it before it can do any damage." Sarigi explained.

Natsume mulled over the information for a moment. "So it's in this town?"

"Not quite yet, perhaps a day or two away." Sarigi answered. "You may have noticed the temperature dropping and humans becoming sick recently? That is the result of this ayakashi draining life from the land to feed itself. It was sealed several mountains beyond this one, just close enough to begin absorbing energy from this area right away. I imagine it will come to stay on this mountain when it arrives, and so I plan to stop it here. This shrine right here was once the main home of the great Sage of the Mountain, and it will serve as a solid point of power."

"Oh... so you wanted my help?" Natsume asked tentatively.

Madara shifted.

"No, no. Or at least I should hope not. If all goes well, you should barely even notice when I seal it." The youkai assured him. "I wanted to meet you because so many ayakashi spoke of you when I arrived in this territory. I was intrigued."

"By me?"

"Yes. The human who carries taken names, the most powerful binding spell of them all, is a person worth meeting I think." Sarigi said serenely.

Natsume tensed. "You know about the Book?"

"You carry the names in a collection, then? But no, I did not know about a book. I only had to recognize the form of a sealing spell I helped create."

Natsume gaped.

Sarigi turned and settled down upon the first step of the old shrine behind him. "Some of the ayakashi I questioned also told me of a strong woman who challenged them to battles and always won. You have are of a strange lineage, child. A grandmother who conquered countless ayakasi to take their names, yet never attacked maliciously. And a grandson who does not wish to hold the power she passed down, on a mission to return every name, regardless of the danger." Sarigi tilted his head slightly.

"Both some of the strongest souls the world has ever seen. Strange indeed."

"I..."

"Well, I suppose I shouldn't keep you here too long. I only wanted to satisfy my curiosity over the famous human" He laughed. "One last thing though... would you let me see this Book? I swear to merely look. It has been a long time since I've seen that binding technique used."

"Ah... I guess," Natsume said slowly, glancing at Madara. He pulled the Book out of his pack.

Sarigi took it carefully in both hands, flipping through the pages almost reverently. "Ah, this is slightly different from my creation."

“What?”

“It has the same base formula… but it has been altered under another’s spiritual power. I suppose that would be your grandmother’s.” Sarigi mused. “Not just anyone could change the spell like this you know. Your family seems to have a special affinity for… hmm, what is probably best described as soul-manipulation spells. Often considered the most powerful and dangerous type.”

Sarigi tilted his head up to look at Natsume, hood slipping down his curved horn, and the boy caught a glimpse of sharp, bright teeth.

“Well, it really was worth finding you, Natsume-sama. If all goes well… may we never meet again.” 

And with that, the ayakashi stood, golden chains clinking, before bowing backwards into the darkness of the shrine and vanishing.

\--~~--

“I’m glad we won’t get caught up in this one.” Natsume said as he and Nyanko Sensei strolled out of the forest. “Sarigi-san can take care of it, right?

“Mm… probably.” Nyanko snorted as he flopped down from a small grassy slope onto the road. “He’s the real deal when it comes to power at least. He’s older than me, even.” The lucky cat tossed his head, nose in the air.

“Really?” Natsume said, surprised. He watched Nyanko’s pout. Then he narrowed his eyes. “Sensei… you’re not jealous, are you?”

“No! Who’d be jealous of an old geezer like that?” Nyanko sputtered, swiping a claw at Natsume’s leg. “Oy brat, I want a manju for all this. We’d better be going to Nanatsujiya’s next!”

“I’m not getting you anything if you hurt me, Sensei.” Natsume grinned.

“Why you-“ Nyanko-Sensei leapt up for an attack while Natsume defended with a few swats, both of them quickly falling into good-natured bickering.

In the end they did make their way over to the sweet shop to buy manju, and when they started back home, Nyanko was happily devouring his treat.

“It’s not even eleven o’clock yet…” Natsume sighed.

Nyanko-Sensei ignored him.

“Oh, Natsume?”

Natsume turned to see Tanuma coming down one the residential streets to the side. He was carrying a large cardboard box and had a couple of large plastic shopping bags hanging off his shoulder.

“Hey Tanuma. What are you doing on this side of town?” Natsume inquired, eyeing the box.

Tanuma tilted his head to the side to look around the load in his arms. “My dad sent me to pick up this thing from a guy he helped the other day. I’m not sure what it is to be honest, but it is really heavy.” He hefted it a bit to demonstrate.

Natsume hesitated. “Do you… Can I help you at all?” He offered after a moment.

“Oh! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to guilt you into anything.” Tanuma exclaimed. “But, um… it actually would be great if you could take these bags.” He added a bit sheepishly.

“Sure,” Natsume agreed. Carefully, they shifted the weight so Natsume could slip the small handles off his arm.

“Really, Natsume?” Nyanko-Sensei huffed from where he was perched atop a nearby wall. “We were almost home already!”

“Hi Ponta,” Tanuma said, nodding in the cat’s direction. “Thanks Natsume, sorry about this.”

“No problem.”

They started walking again. Nyanko Sensei heaved a sigh and said, “Oy, Natsume. We’re all done with that meeting, so I’ll just be waiting at home. Don’t get into any trouble.” With that, he turned and bounded away before Natsume could reply.

“Meeting?” Tanuma inquired after a few moments.

“Oh… there’s a youkai visiting the area, and apparently some other spirits were talking about me. He wanted to meet me.”

Tanuma frowned, leaning in towards Natsume slightly. “You weren’t…”

“It was fine,” Natsume reassured his friend. “Really, all he wanted to do was see me. He’ll probably just go back up north when he’s done here.”

“Oh good.” Tanuma settled back into his stride.

A slightly awkward silence settled over the two. After a few minutes Tanuma said, “The weather’s been pretty weird lately, huh? I don’t think I’ve ever seen it this cold in spring.”

Natsume lowered his gaze to the concrete. “Yeah…”

Tanuma eyed him. “It isn’t something to do with a youkai is it?”

“Well… that’s actually one of the things the spirit I met earlier mentioned. I guess there’s a different youkai coming this way that’s… causing this cold spell.” 

Tanuma watched Natsume with a look that screamed ‘I know you’re leaving things out, again. Stop it.’ But he didn’t press any more. Instead he asked, “Anything I should be careful of?”

“I don’t think so. I was told it would be over by Monday, or around then. Hopefully.”

“Hopefully.” Tanuma echoed, and Natsume laughed softly.

“Nyanko Sensei said this youkai is strong enough to take care of it.”

Tanuma’s mouth quirked up in a half-smile. “Guess we’ll just have to trust them then.”

They started across the bridge that led up to Tanuma’s home. An ayakashi that had been sitting in the riverbed below jumped up as it saw Natusme.

“Natsume-dono!” It yelled.

Natsume reluctantly stopped, and the ayakashi leapt up onto the railing of the bridge. 

Tanuma looked back from a few paces ahead. “Natsume?” Realization crossed his face. “Oh- is there something there?” He asked, already setting down the box.

“Yeah. Sorry Tanuma, this should only be a minute.” Natsume turned back to the waiting youkai. He was pretty sure he recognized it as one who hung around the Dog’s Circle now and then, though he’d never spoken to it personally.

“I apologize for detaining you, Natsume-dono, I have a message for you. A dangerous spirit is coming this way… yes, very, very dangerous.”

“Oh, I heard about that already… the one causing this weather, right?”

“No, no, no!” The ayakashi shook its head violently. “Everyone already knows about that one, there is another coming.” It dropped to a whisper. _“The Grand Lady. The chalice of the All-Seeing. You must be careful, yes; she puts us all in peril.”_ Suddenly it leaned in, nose-to-nose with Natsume, and the boy jumped back with a yelp. Tanuma started forward, concern written across his face, but paused when Natsume rebalanced himself.

“She arrives tomorrow; you must not let her find you!” It hissed, drawing back. Its masked face watched Natsume a moment longer before it turned and hopped back down into the river, floating out of sight under the bridge.

Natsume let out a breath, a hand on his chest.

“Are you alright? Is… is it gone?” Tanuma asked, tentatively stepping closer.

“Yeah, yeah I’m… alright.” Natsume exhaled slowly, trying to calm himself. “It just scared me a little.”

“What did it want?”

“Oh... it gave me a warning. I’ll have to ask Sensei about it when I get back home.”

Natsume twitched under Tanuma’s Look, more intense this time. “Um, there’s another youkai coming that might be dangerous… the one that just told me was being kind of dramatic though, so… yeah. I need to ask Sensei.”

“Well then,” Tanuma hauled the box up with a grunt. “We should hurry and finish this up.”

\--~~--

Natsume slid the bags off his shoulder and set them down on the entry step as Tanuma stretched up, bending backwards slightly.

“Oh thank god that’s done,” he sighed in relief, relaxing and rolling his shoulders. “My arms are so sore right now.” Tanuma slipped off his shoes and grabbed the plastic bags. “Thanks Natsume, that was a huge help.”

“You’re welcome,” Natsume said with a smile. “I’m free all day anyway. Oh- I just remembered, Kitamoto wants to hold a homework session tomorrow… would you like to join us?”

“Oh! Yeah, he invited me when I ran into him on my way home yesterday. That’s what I forgot to tell you earlier, we confirmed having it here.”

“Okay, good. Touko-san is still sick so I didn’t want it to be at my house. Thanks Tanuma.” Natsume slid the door open. “I’ll see you tomorrow then?” 

“Yeah, see you then,” Tanuma gave a small wave as Natsume stepped outside, closed the door behind him, and headed back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another one down!
> 
> Also, in case any of you read Autumn Table and somehow caught that reference, no, these stories are not related, I just really wanted to make a reference to myself. lol.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finals are eating me alive.

When Natsume returned from his impromptu errand to Tanuma’s house, he found Nyanko Sensei passed out belly up in front of the space heater and snoring away.

Well. There went his plans of asking about new suspicious youkai.

Natsume sighed and turned to his desk, pulling some of Friday’s homework toward himself. He figured he might as well get some of it done before tomorrow. 

It wasn’t even ten minutes before he was distracted by the sudden beginnings of rain pattering on the roof that steadily became louder with every passing second. Fat drops streaked down the window, and the temperature disparity began fogging up the glass.

Natsume spent a few moments just staring out at the rain before he reluctantly dragged his attention back to focus on the worksheets in front of him- and a spike of jagged cold stabbed through his chest.

A strangled gasp escaped his throat as Natsume jumped up, whirling around. He grasped at the front of his shirt and fearfully scanned his room. It was empty. He wasn’t sure if that was better or worse, honestly.

Unable to shake a sudden feeling of _wrongness_ , Natsume slowly, warily sat down again. Nyanko Sensei was still sleeping peacefully in his corner. Natsume waited, still and silent, but no further pain came, and his room remained stubbornly void of answers.

Natsume spent far longer than he’d like to admit just staring at Nyanko Sensei and trying to decide whether or not to wake him. The continued absence of anything unusual eventually convinced him not to though, so Natsume tried again to focus his assignment.

He failed, of course.

\--~~--

Nyanko was jerked from sleep when a sudden tingling shot through his body. Grumpily, he cracked open an eye to try and find the source of the disturbance. His surroundings seemed to be clear of spirits, but since most of them could become invisible at will, that didn’t mean much. He cast out his senses to try and find any sign of an ayakashi, but frowned when that came up empty as well.

Far more awake now, Nyanko took a proper look around the room. Rain was pounding against the windows and the sky outside was dark and gloomy. Natsume was sitting at his low desk, head resting on his folded arms and face turned away from Nyanko.

He scowled in frustration. “Oy, brat,”

Nyanko watched with some amusement as Natsume _jumped_ , banging his knees on the underside of the table and falling backwards with a yelp.

“Heh, very coordinated.” He snickered as he stretched out and trotted over to the boy.

“Sensei, don’t _do_ that,” Natsume groaned, picking himself up.

Nyanko was tempted to snark back, but discarded the idea in favor of efficiency. “You didn’t see any ayakashi come through here, did you?”

Natsume stilled. “No, but… a little while ago there was this…” Nyanko watched the boy’s face scrunch up as he tried to think of the right words. “Thing.”

“Thing.” Nyanko repeated skeptically.

“Yeah… it was really cold. And it hurt.” Natsume absentmindedly rubbed at a spot in the middle of his chest. “Like being stabbed with an icicle I guess… Don’t laugh Sensei.”

Nyanko did not attempt to stifle his snort. “An icicle, sure. How long ago was this?”

Natsume considered it. “Maybe an hour ago? Or a little less? I was kind of lost in thought for a while.”

That didn’t match up with what he had experienced, but it was entirely probably that humans and ayakashi would be affected differently. “Hm. I felt something off just now. Not sure if they’re connected though.”

“I hope not.” Natsume replied. After a moment, he continued. “I don’t think this has anything to do with it, but I ran into a youkai earlier when I was with Tanuma and it gave me a warning.”

This human had to be the most trouble-prone one in existence. Nyanko heaved a longsuffering sigh. “And?”

“It- it said there’s some kind of ‘Grand Lady’ coming, and something about a chalice? It also said she was dangerous enough to force other youkai into hiding, but it was being kind of dramatic, so I’m not sure what to think.” Natsume explained. “I was hoping you would know something about it.”

A Grand Lady and a chalice. Recognition danced just out of his reach, and after a few moments of searching his memory, Nyanko was forced to admit defeat. “It sounds familiar, but I can’t remember anything specific right now. I can ask Misuzu later… or maybe Hinoe, it seems like something she would know. With a title like that, she’s probably important, but I wouldn’t worry about it too much.”

“The youkai I talked to said she would be arriving tomorrow, so I just wanted to make sure…” Natsume hedged.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll ask around. The name’s not ringing any alarm bells at least, so it’s fine. Probably.”

“I’ve been hearing way too much of that lately.” Natsume complained. “Alright. I guess I’ll just… leave it to you?”

“I’ll take care of it in the morning,” Nyanko promised, sighing. The things he does for this human…

“Thank you, Sensei.”

Nyanko didn’t dignify that with a response, and instead headed for the stairs to see if there was any leftover pudding in the fridge.

\--~~--

Natsume laid on his futon, staring up at the dark ceiling and shivering under several layers of blanket. It had been hours since he’d gone to bed, but sleep still eluded him. A frost had begun creeping along the edges of his consciousness, and it wouldn’t let him rest.

It was almost like the tingling feeling you could get when you felt like someone was watching you, but somehow colder. Natsume curled up, clenching his jaw to still his chattering teeth.

The chill refused to fade until the moon began to set, and Natsume, exhausted and fearful, was finally able to fall asleep.

\--~~--

Late the next morning, Natsume woke up to steel-grey light shining through the windows and Nyanko Sensei snoring away on his chest. A feeling of unease was prickling at his mind, but it was a few minutes before he realized the source. There was no soft conversation, no food sizzling, no dishes clattering- the house was silent. 

Unceremoniously shoving Nyanko Sensei off him, Natsume stumbled to his feet, exhaustion dragging at his bones. He quickly changed clothes, then crept downstairs. The quiet was unnerving.

“Shigeru-san? Touko-san?” Natsume called out hesitantly. No response.

Natsume started toward Touko’s room, but as he passed the kitchen, he spotted a piece of paper in the middle of the table. Backtracking, he hurried to the table and as he got closer, he realized it was a note.

_Takashi-kun_  
_Touko still wasn’t feeling well this morning, so I’m taking her to the doctor._  
_We probably won’t be back for a while, but I’ve left some rice and fish in the fridge if you’re hungry._  
_Have fun at your study session!_  
_-Shigeru_

Natsume frowned. Touko was still sick? This was the fourth day; usually it didn’t take so long for her to recover. With new concern, Natsume packed the leftover breakfast into a bento for lunch and headed back upstairs to collect his schoolwork.

Once he had packed his bag, Natsume focused on the still-sleeping Nyanko Sensei and poked at him with a toe.

“Get up Sensei, I have to go soon.”

The lucky cat mumbled something indistinct before groaning and rolling off his back. “Already?” he whined.

“Yes. Come on, I don’t want to keep them waiting and you should get moving too.” Natsume nudged him again.

Nyanko grumbled, but finally hopped to his feet, scowling up at Natsume- then he stilled.

“Sensei?”

“You-“ Nyanko Sensei trotted closer and sniffed at Natsume’s leg. “You’ve had an ayakashi in your head. Again.” He narrowed his eyes. “What did you do this time?”

“Nothing!” Natsume said, miffed. “I couldn’t sleep last night because it was so cold… oh. It didn’t do anything to me did it?”

Nyanko inspected him, more closely this time. “No, it doesn’t look like it. But it has the same energy signature as the attack from yesterday afternoon. I guess they are connected after all.” 

He sighed, exasperated. “You’ll need to be more careful today. It’s possible this is just from the unsealed youkai Sarigi talked about, but if not… Hmph. Well.”

Nyanko stretched out one last time, then pattered across the room to pry the door open. “I’ll be asking around about that youkai you mentioned yesterday. I expect lunch when I get back.” The door slammed shut.

Natsume exhaled slowly, before gathering up his things and heading out.

\--~~--

Natsume jogged up to the entrance of Tanuma’s house and rapped on the thick wood. Then he stepped back, stamping his feet and exhaling into his gloved hands in an attempt to stay warm. Thankfully he didn’t have to stand there long as Tanuma appeared in the entryway, enthusiastically hauling the heavy storm door open.

“Natsume! Good morning, you’re the first one here.” His friend greeted with a smile. “Come on in. I’ve got everything set up in the reflection room.”

“Pardon the intrusion…” Natsume murmured as he slipped off his shoes and followed Tanuma inside. “Um… which one is the reflection room?” He asked after fully registering Tanuma’s words.

“Oh,” Tanuma ducked his head, embarrassed. “That’s the room with the shadow of the fish pond on the ceiling… I guess I just started calling it that in my head.”

“It makes sense,” Natsume said amicably. 

“Though it’s too cold today to leave the garden doors open so…” Tanuma muttered as they entered the designated room. “No reflection this time.”

Natsume hummed in acknowledgement. 

“I’m going to get some drinks for us. You want water or juice?” Tanuma asked as Natsume sat down at the table.

“Ah, water is fine, thank you.” Natsume replied. He hesitated a moment, then continued, “Would you mind if I look at the pond anyway? I kinda want to see it.”

“Sure, just don’t ruin all of this space heater’s hard work.” Tanuma said teasingly. “I’ll be right back.”

Natsume shuffled on his knees over to the porch doors, sliding them open just a crack. His eyes widened as he took in the sight. The pond was completely frozen, but instead of solidifying into a smooth surface like it normally would, the water had crystallized into spiky, jagged chunks. Bright red and orange koi fish were frozen in the larger spikes, bodies twisted in jumping positions. It was like a huge jewel, facets all glittering in the cold morning light.

“Something interesting?” Tanuma inquired as he reentered the room, jolting Natsume from his awed trance.

“The pond froze… but…” Natsume trailed off, unable to find the right words to describe the sight.

“Now I really wish I could see it,” Tanume sighed. “I’ll just have to hope some of it reflects onto the ceiling later.”

“Yeah… It’s really beautiful.” Quietly, Natsume pushed the door closed and shuffled back over to the table. The two boys spread their books over the table and were just getting to work when a distant knocking filtered its way into the room.

“Oh, that should be Kitamoto.” Tanuma got to his feet. “Probably Nishimura too.”

Sure enough, two new voices soon echoed down the hall and a few moments later, the second half of their study group appeared. Tanuma brought them to the room then padded off to the kitchen again.

“You know, my brother mentioned that about half of his class is out sick,” Nishumura was saying as he walked in. “There’s seriously something going around. I’m amazed Tanuma and Natsume haven’t caught it with how often they usually get sick.” He added with a grin. “Oh, hi Natsume!”

Natsume lifted a hand in greeting. “Hey guys.”

Kitamoto also nodded a hello. “My dad hasn’t been doing so well lately either. Mana and I are getting kind of worried.” He said.

“Oh…” Nishimura sobered for a moment. “Well, hopefully this thing will just make its nasty rounds and then be gone. No point in getting too freaked out about it!” He declared as he flopped down at the table.

“Yeah,” Kitamoto sighed, pulling out his books. “It’s just been a bad time for this town overall. They still haven’t found that girl who went missing the other day.”

“I know!” Nishimura exclaimed, leaning in. “I heard that she just vanished without a trace. Like, the police couldn’t find _any_ clues to her disappearance. It’s like she was just spirited away or something.”

Natsume winced.

“Nishimura, you shouldn’t make light of that family’s situation,” Kitamoto chided.

Nishimura ducked his head. “Right, sorry.” 

Tanuma reappeared in the doorway, a glass in each hand. “Ready?”

A small chorus of ‘yes’s’ replied, though Nishimura’s was more of a grumble.

“Nishimura and I have a math test on Tuesday I think… how about we start with that?” Natsume suggested.

“Wait. We have a test on Tuesday?” Nishimura squawked.

“Sure, I’ve been struggling with that recently too.”Kitamoto replied. “And Sacchan, you really should pay more attention to that stuff.”

Nishimura slumped onto the table with a moan.

\--~~--

_-Meanwhile, somewhere deep in the forest-_

Nyanko bounded between the tree trunks, halting here and there to sniff, tracking the trail of a youkai. The Grand Lady. He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten such a legendary ayakashi- and he’d gotten an earful from Hinoe for it- but the important thing was that he knew now.

It wasn’t quite the threat they had been worried about, but still. He needed to make sure he reached her before anyone else.

A new scent tickled at his nose. There it was. Nyanko leapt, shifted- and with a roar, arrowed off into the sky.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all
> 
> (1) Happy New Year!  
> (2) I'm sorry, I know this chapter is super late, but  
> (3) I slammed my fingers in a car door about a week and a half ago, which left me effectively unable to type until now. I'm well on my way to recovery, but the next chapter may be a little late as well. I had this one mostly finished already, so I decided I could just work on it with hunt-and-peck typing. ~~that's also my excuse if there are any mistakes~~

Natsume was in the middle of jotting down ideas for an essay when a loud splat sounded from behind him. He jumped, arm slipping off the table and pencil clattering to the floor. The other three boys looked up at him curiously.

“Natsume?” Tanuma and Nishimura asked in tandem.

“You… you didn’t hear that?” Natsume said anxiously.

Worry immediately creased Tanuma’s brow while Nishimura and Kitomoto cocked their heads to listen. 

“Nope, I don’t hear anything,” Nishimura concluded after a moment. “But I wasn’t really paying attention before you asked, so maybe I missed it.”

“Oh,” Natsume said. Slowly, he twisted to face the sliding doors at his back. A dark blob was silhouetted though the paper, on the ground in the far corner of the frame. It was slowly expanding, creeping over the door and blocking out the light. Natsume forced himself not to react and stiffly turned back to his friends.

“…Is there something there?” Tanuma inquired hesitantly.

Natsume’s gaze flickered between Nishimura and Kitamoto. “No,” He laughed weakly. “Just my imagination again.”

Mind racing, Natsume resolutely stared down at his essay, not taking in a word. It wasn’t until he saw Nishimura shrug and go back to his own work, Kitamoto following suit, that he dared to act.

“I’m gonna go use the bathroom,” Natsume murmured, climbing to his feet. Kitamoto distractedly hummed in acknowledgement as Tanuma stared, concern splashed across his face. Thankfully the bathroom and the house’s side exit were in the same direction, so Natsume didn’t have to worry about sneaking around to protect his story.

The door Natsume was aiming for opened up onto the same long porch as the reflection room’s doors, just a bit farther down. As silently as he could, Natsume nudged the sliding panels open, every scrape of wood ringing loud in his ears. When he poked his head through the opening, he was horrified to see the strange black blob- youkai, he realized, it was a youkai- covering nearly the entire doorframe of the reflection room. Suddenly panicking, Natsume darted out onto the garden deck, fully out in the open. The youkai paused in its movements- then began peeling itself off the door and stretching out towards Natsume.

Natsume took a tiny step back, eyes glued to the reaching, amoeba-like movements of the oily mass. For a moment, time slowed to a crawl, and he observed with some curiosity a few glowing dots in what might have been the head of the body. Then time returned with a vengeance, and with an abrupt burst of speed, the youkai’s tendrils shot straight at him, tips sharpening into points. 

Natsume yelped and stumbled backward, tripping over himself- desperately throwing up an arm to defend his face. It worked- sort of. His fall dodged most of the tendrils, and his arm deflected the biggest oncoming spear, but not before it left a mark. Natsume hissed in pain as he felt it bite into his skin, and he twisted in place as he tried to prepare for the next attack. But inexplicably, it stopped, slowly withdrawing all of its extensions back into the amorphous main body.

Clutching at his arm, Natsume pushed himself off the deck. His friends hadn’t come bursting outside so they must not have heard any of his encounter. That was good at least. He looked up at the hostile youkai again- just in time to see it collapse in on itself and melt away into the floorboards. Frozen, Natsume waited a few more agonizing moments, arm throbbing, but it made no further appearance. 

Once the immediate danger was gone, Natsume was able to properly inspect the damage. A shallow cut slashed up his arm, starting a few inches above his inner wrist and curving slightly around the outside to a little below his elbow crease. Both his hands were smudged with red, and a drop of blood rolled down his finger and spattered onto the deck underneath. Natsume grimaced. He’d have to get this cleaned up quickly before anyone noticed.

As Natsume crept back into the house, free hand cupped under his bleeding arm, he realized something else. There was no way he was going to be able to hide this from his friends. He was wearing short sleeves, and they would be suspicious if he went and got his coat from the hall.

Maybe he could borrow something from Tanuma and just claim he was cold? But no, that would involve telling Tanuma, and it would still be pretty strange to borrow clothes like that out of nowhere. Natsume deliberated as he carefully washed the blood off his hands and arm, wincing as the water ran over the wound. He was so deep in thought that he didn’t notice Tanuma’s arrival until the other gasped.

“Natsume! Wha-what happened?” Tanuma demanded, rushing forward. 

“T-tanuma,” Natsume stuttered, trying to shy away from his friend’s stare. “Look, it’s- ah!” He yelped as Tanuma grabbed his shoulders and spun him around. When their eyes met, Natsume did a double take. Tanuma looked… horrified, yes, but more than that… he looked scared.

“Natsume.” Tanuma said, his voice calm. Trembling. “How did this happen?”

Natsume remained still in his grasp, dropping his gaze to the floor. “There. Um. There was a youkai outside the reflection room earlier, so I went to go take care of it but… it attacked me. I’m fine,” He added, glancing at his arm. “It’s not even that deep.”

He shrank under the weight of Tanuma’s Look.

“You’re definitely not fine, and we need to get that wrapped right away.” Tanuma said, gently catching Natsume’s arm to inspect the cut. It was still dripping blood. “I think I have first-aid things in the hall closet. You should keep…” He trailed off as Nishimura’s voice echoed down the hall.

“Oyy, Tanuma! Did you find Natsume? Are you guys alright?”

Tanuma twitched. “Yeah,” He called back after a moment. “Natsume is…” He paused and glanced at the boy in question. “…He’s not feeling well.”

“Ohh, did he catch that cold?” Footsteps started along toward them.

Tanuma and Natsume shared a panicked look. “That’s not- agh. Okay, I’m just gonna-“ The dark-haired boy muttered. He bolted out the door and slammed it closed behind him. Natsume stood there alone, slightly stunned.

“Is he alright?” Nishimura asked from outside.

“Yeah, I was just about to… get him some medicine. He’ll probably go home after this.” Tanuma replied

“Aw man,” Nishimura clicked his tongue. “I guess we were mostly finished anyway so it’s not too bad. I can walk him home once he gets out, we live in kinda the same direction.”

“No!” Tanuma said, a little too loud.

There was a short pause. 

“Um, I mean…” 

Natsume rushed to fill the desperate silence. “I have a project I wanted his help with, and I thought he could… pick it up since I’m sick.” He finished with what he hoped was a convincing cough. Another agonizing moment of silence passed.

“Oh! Well okay then.” Nishimura said, sounding a bit surprised. “I’ll go pack up your school stuff then? Hang in there Natsume.”

“Yeah, thanks,” He didn’t even have to fake his weak voice.

Nishimura walked away, and Tanuma sighed in relief once he was out of earshot. “I’ll be right back.”

Natsume sank to the floor, gloomily noting the new spatters of blood that dotted the tiles. He’d been too focused on the conversation outside to notice the falling drops. 

The clattering door announced Tanuma’s return. “Here,” He held out a handful of medical supplies. “We didn’t have much, but I was able to find some butterfly bandages and gauze, so that will have to do for now. Do you need help putting them on?”

Natsume considered his bloodied fingers and aching arm. “Thanks.”

Tanuma nodded and pulled Natsume to his feet to rinse off the injury again. Then he quickly patted it dry and began pinning the slice closed with the butterfly bandages. Even tense with pain it was strangely grounding, a careful, methodical process after the chaos of before.

“Please stop doing this,” Tanuma said suddenly.

Natsume blinked. “What?”

“This,” He elaborated, waving vaguely at Natsume’s arm. “You keep running out into dangerous situations even when there are other people to help you and… you get hurt. I’m worried, Natsume. I know you have Ponta and all, but what if you get caught up in something bigger than you can handle? You could end up… way worse than this.” He finished in a low voice. 

“I’m sorry,” Natsume mumbled. “I just- I’m sorry.”

Tanuma remained silent as he finished securing the gauze wrap. Natsume very carefully avoided his eyes.

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Thank you. I’m sorry Tanuma.” Tucking his arm against his chest, Natsume followed his friend to the entryway.

Tanuma briefly rested a hand on his shoulder before handing him his coat. “I’ll grab Nishimura and Kitamoto, and then we can go.”

Natsume gingerly maneuvered his arm into the sleeve as Tanuma left. By the time he returned with the other two boys, the injury was completely hidden from view.

“You alright there Natsume?” Kitamoto inquired.

“I just need to get some rest I think,” Natsume replied with a wan smile.

The group split up once they reached the main road. “I hope you feel better soon!” Nishimura said brightly.

“See you guys tomorrow.” Tanuma waved. 

Once Nishimura and Kitamoto had disappeared around the corner, Tanuma turned to Natsume. “Right then. Let’s hurry and get you home.”

\--~~--

The welcome sound of soft conversation greeted Natsume when he walked through the front door of the Fujiwara home.

“Welcome back Takashi-kun,” Shigeru said as he stepped out into the hall. “You’re home early. Oh, and… Tanuma-kun, if I remember correctly?”

“Yeah,” Tanuma replied. “Sorry for coming over with no warning.”

“It’s no problem, we’re always happy to see friends of Natsume’s here.” Shigeru waved away Tanuma’s worries with a smile. “Weren’t you studying with some other boys though?”

“Oh, I was…” Natsume hesitated. If he said he was sick… “We just finished up early, and I wanted Tanuma’s help with something. How is Touko-san?”

“Ah, doing much better. The doctor said this is just a strange lingering cold that’s been going around, but it’s not terribly serious. He advised we just keep up what we were doing, plenty of bedrest and warm drinks. Speaking of which, come on in, I was just making tea.” Dutifully, the boys followed Shigeru into the kitchen.

\--~~--

Two steaming cups of tea in hand, Natsume and Tanuma climbed the steps to Natsume’s room. With a sigh of relief, Natsume shrugged off his coat, wincing as his arm twinged in protest. The bandages were already speckled red. He rummaged through his closet for his hidden stash of medical supplies while Tanuma stood awkwardly off to the side.

Natsume pulled out a roll of fresh gauze and sat down. “I’m glad Shigeru didn’t ask why I was wearing my coat in the house.”

“Do they usually ask about that kind of thing? I feel like you… um…” Tanuma trailed off as he settled next to Natsume.

“Hmm?”

“…You get into a lot of unexplainable situations.” He finished in a mumble.

“Oh.” Natsume went quiet for a beat. “Yeah… I guess so. If Touko-san was the one who welcomed us, she might’ve asked.”

A tense silence stretched between the two. Eventually Natsume’s eyes fell back to his injured arm.

“Tanuma… will you help me with this again please?” Natsume requested as he carefully began to unwind his old wrapping.

“Sure.” He unrolled some new gauze while Natsume dropped the stained strips on the table beside him.

“By the way… you don’t actually need my help for a project right?” Tanuma asked, tearing off the extra length of bandage.

It took Natsume a moment to remember what he was talking about. “Oh, no. That was to deter Nishimura… and Shigeru.” He gave a small, cheerless smile.

“Alright,” Tanuma said, getting to his feet. “Should I just head home? I have some… cleaning to do before my dad gets back.”

“Oh!” Natsume inhaled sharply as he remembered. “I’m so sorry Tanuma, I should’ve helped with that before we left. I didn’t want you to have to clean up my… um.”

“Natsume. It’s fine. Don’t apologize anymore for that, you weren’t trying to get hurt. It’s the youkai’s fault, not yours.” Tanuma admonished gently.

“Right, sor-” Natsume cut himself off, fists clenching in his lap.

Tanuma’s mouth twitched in a half-smile, and the atmosphere eased a little. “Will you be at school tomorrow?”

“I think so, as long as I can keep this hidden.” Natsume lifted his newly-wrapped arm. “Maybe it’s good that it’s so cold. Our school uniforms are still long-sleeve.”

“See you later th-“ Tanuma was suddenly and violently interrupted by a thunderous boom and rattling windows. Natsume jolted, and scrambled to look outside.

“Natsume?” Tanuma exclaimed, eyes wide.

Natsume barely heard him, all his attention on the huge white wolf youkai in the yard. “Wha- Sensei!” He gasped. 

Fumbling with the latch, Natsume threw open the window. “Sensei, what’s going on?”

Madara made no reply, instead leaping up and tumbling through the gap back in lucky cat form.

“Ponta? That was you?” Tanuma relaxed marginally.

“Natsume.” Nyanko Sensei started, completely serious. “I found the Grand Lady.”

Natsume just stared, more than a little worried. He almost never saw Nyanko Sensei this riled up.

“She’s not… dangerous, exactly, not to us anyway. She might even be willing to help you. But we still need to go and greet her.”

“Who… who is she?” Natsume asked tentatively.

“The Grand Lady is one of the remaining Twelve, a bunch of ancient spirits who became more like gods than ayakashi. She has the power to reveal youkai.”

Natsume blinked.

Nyanko sighed. “She carries a cup, a chalice. Whoever drinks from it will be able to see youkai, and possibly the entire spiritual spectrum.” He eyed Natsume’s continued confusion. “It’s like the Taki girl’s circle, but as a drink, and better.”

Natsume opened his mouth to respond, but Tanuma spoke up first. “Is that a bad thing? I mean… wouldn’t people who can already see youkai be the only ones who could find her in the first place?”

Nyanko scowled. “Normally yes, but she has history of pouring the Seeing draught into local water sources. The Grand Lady is the only one of the Twelve who cannot make herself visible to normal humans, maybe because she has the power to reveal everything else, who knows. Point is, she wants to be seen. Thankfully she _does_ have manners, so if a head priest or exorcist of the area specifically asks her not to mess with the water, she won’t. Which is why we need to catch her quickly before she can do any damage.”

“Okay… but…” Tanuma said slowly.

“I’m not a priest or an exorcist.” Natsume completed the thought. “Wouldn’t we need to… ask Matoba to talk to her?” He continued uneasily.

“No,” Nyanko Sensei huffed. “A drink from the Grand Lady’s chalice is a coveted opportunity for most exorcists. It acts like a temporary extra power source. That idiot exorcist would be the worst possible person to send.”

“Oh.” Natsume slumped, in relief or resignation he wasn’t quite sure.

Tanuma glanced between the two. “Who’s Matoba?”

Natsume’s expression tightened. “He’s… the leader of a lot of the local exorcist clans.” He said quietly.

Tanuma was silent for a moment. “Local exorcist clans? He asked weakly. “As in, this area has multiple exorcists?”

“I think every town has an exorcist clan,” Natsume said somewhat absentmindedly, still distracted by Nyanko’s information.

“I…see…”

“Natsume. We need to go before the Lady figures out how to tap into the water lines or the exorcists find her. This Tanuma brat can get home on his own.” Nyanko Sensei commanded, impatient.

“Okay, okay. Tanuma… I’m sorry about this. All of this.” Natsume lifted his bandaged arm a bit.

“It’s alright Natsume. I have to head home anyway. And… don’t get hurt again. Please.”

“…I’ll try.”

“Good. Let’s go.” Nyanko Sensei grunted. He nudged Natsume to the open window before leaping out, shifting forms, and hauling a yelling Natsume out after him. Tanuma watched Natsume settle onto seemingly nothing before his body shimmered into an indistinct blur and shot off into the air. He just stood there for several more minutes, staring out the window. Then, reluctantly, he turned and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's no way Natsume _doesn't_ have a secret supply of medical stuff somewhere.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The struggle to write in-character dialogue is real
> 
>  
> 
> Minor edits for continuity (6/5/19)

As they flew off toward the Grand Lady, Natsume squinted against the air rushing past his face, watching the town scenery zip by below him. Madara really wasn’t holding back with his speed.

“Where are we going?” He yelled, leaning down closer to Madara’s ear.

“When I found the Grand Lady, she was disturbingly close to one of the Matoba estates. If we’re lucky, she won’t have gone too much farther.” The youkai’s rumbling voice was nearly lost to the wind. 

Natsume settled back, anxiety scratching at the edges of his thoughts. Matoba…

Within minutes, youkai and rider came into sight of their destination. Madara circled the area for a bit before descending into a small field behind one of the surrounding houses.

“The Lady is this way,” Madara said, delicately sniffing at the air off to his left. “But I had to land here so we wouldn’t be seen by any exorcists at the estate. Let’s go.” He bounded off down the dirt road. 

Madara poofed back into his lucky cat form as he ran, leaving Natsume behind in his literal dust. 

“Sensei, wait up!” Natsume caught sight of his companion again disappearing into a sparse patch of trees far ahead.

When he stumbled into the small bit of forest, gasping for air, Nyanko Sensei was already standing in front of a tall, slender ayakashi. 

“There you are,” Nyanko said, words clipped. “This is the Grand Lady.”

Natsume took in her floor-length midnight hair, the layers of airy, glittering silk that formed her kimono, and her black eyes with luminescent green irises.

“Greetings, human child.” Her soft, rough voice momentarily surprised Natsume. Uncertain of how to behave in front of her, Natsume bowed in return.

“I see at least one of you has proper manners.” The Grand Lady said evenly. Natsume glanced at Nyanko, who only scowled. “You’re here to request that I do not mix the Seeing draught into the water of this land, are you not?”

“Ah, yes…” Natsume said uneasily.

She pinned him with an imperious gaze. “But you are neither priest nor exorcist.”

“N-no, I’m not, but we were hoping… hoping you’d listen anyway.” Natsume said cautiously.

“Hm.”

Natsume shifted uncomfortably under her continued stare. Softly, he murmured “Sensei… I don’t think-“

“Very well.”

He jumped. “Wha- really?” 

Nyanko snorted.

A tiny smile twitched across the Lady’s face. “Yes, ‘really’.”

Natsume ducked his head. “Sorry, I just… um.”

She dismissed his apology with a wave of her hand. “Truth be told, I had decided to listen to you the moment I realized you were the unusual spiritual presence I felt in this town. Humans like yourself are rare, and it’s even rarer to see such powers passed down.”

It took a while for her words to sink in. The Grand Lady must know about the Book of Friends, he realized. Inwardly, Natsume sighed, and moved on. “Oh. So you won’t put the… Seeing draught… into the water?”

“I will not.” She confirmed. “I do not plan to stay here long either way, so it is of little importance. Once the Devourer is resealed, I shall return to my home.” The Lady aimed a disapproving look at Nyanko as she said it.

“The Devourer… you’re helping Sarigi-san?” Natsume tentatively guessed.

“I see you’ve already spoken with him then, excellent. He requested my presence to act as a third point of power in the sealing spell. We will be acting tonight, at midnight.” The Lady informed him. “I suggest you find a safe place to ride out the energy surge it will cause.”

“Alright,” Natsume nodded slowly. “Thank you.”

She inclined her head in the barest of acknowledgements. “I see you’ve already had a run-in with one his spores as well.”

“His… the Devourer?” Natsume asked, with a sort of confused dread.

“Yes. It left a mark on your arm.”

“Oh… that was the Devourer?” He gasped, rushing to pull up his coat sleeve.

“What?” Nyanko gaped at the bandages. “Natsume! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You rushed in so fast I didn’t have a chance to, and then I was distracted!” Natsume said defensively. “And it was uncovered the whole time we were in my room; you could have seen it then.”

Nyanko Sensei sputtered.

The Grand Lady watched the two of them with vague amusement. “The spore did not manage to curse or capture you, so no harm done.”

“…It cut me?” Natsume said warily.

She gave him an unimpressed look. “That is temporary.”

Natsume was dubious, but decided not to argue the point. To an ayakashi, an injury like his probably wasn’t of great concern. 

“Well, that’s settled then. There’s no point in staying here any longer. But before I go, I shall leave you with two things, tokens of my goodwill.” She continued, her voice low and serious. “First, a name.”

Natsume saw Nyanko Sensei start out of the corner of his eye.

“You may call me Meishime. I do not give out any of my names lightly, so do not use it with anyone other than me and your… bodyguard. Second, I offer you a drink from my chalice.”

This time Nyanko moved, bounding over to stand between Natsume and the ancient ayakashi. “What is it you want from him?” He demanded, managing to look intimidating even in his sealed form.

She considered him for a long moment. “I have nothing in mind,” Meishime answered at last. “But it is always good to have those with great powers on your side, is it not?”

Nyanko glared up at her, silent, calculating.

“Sensei…?” Natsume said hesitantly.

At last the lucky cat stepped aside, settling down again next to Natsume. “If you try anything with this human, I will stop you.”

Something dangerous ghosted over her expression. “You’re welcome to try, _Madara_.”

“M-meishime-sama,” Natsume stuttered, watching their exchange anxiously.

She turned to him, calm and polite once again. There was now a slender goblet in her hand, though when- and how- she’d brought it out Natsume wasn’t sure.

“One sip.” She commanded, holding out the chalice.

“Oh… I’m sorry, but I don’t need anything like that,” Natsume said quietly. “Thank you for offering it to me though!” He added hurriedly. 

Meishime raised a single delicate eyebrow. “You are refusing it?”

“Y-yes,” Natsume managed, looking to the side, away from her piercing gaze.

“Unusual indeed,” She murmured. “Here. Take it anyway. You never know when you may need a little extra power.” 

A hand cupped under a miniature clay jar entered Natsume’s field of vision. “This way, you may use it whenever you find yourself in need of it.” Meishime informed him.

Natsume just stared at the gift for a long while, but her hand held steady. Reluctantly he took it, and she immediately stepped back. When he looked up, Meishime offered him a slight bow. “Farewell, Natsume-sama. Madara.”

Natsume returned the gesture, far deeper than hers. “Goodbye Meishime-sama.” And she was gone.

\--~~--

By the time Natsume and Madara made it back to the Fujiwara home, and Natsume had climbed ungracefully through his bedroom window, the sun was beginning to set. He took a minute to settle himself and sort through his thoughts. Nyanko Sensei curled up, a warm weight in his lap.

“We were gone for longer than I thought, somehow,” Natsume mused, fishing in his coat pocket to pull out the little clay vial. Gently he set it down on the table at his side.

Nyanko hummed. “It’s entirely possible that time flows differently in the Lady’s presence.” 

Natsume digested that statement for a few seconds. “How… how strong is she?”

“Very. She’s not one you should ever go against.”

“But… you did. Go against her.” Natsume said slowly.

“I did.” Nyanko Sensei agreed, unnaturally serious.

Natsume stared down at the lucky cat, but his companion remained silent, eyes closed. A small, soft smile crept over Natsume’s face. 

“I’m going to go check on Touko-san.” Natsume announced after a moment. He nudged a grumbling Nyanko Sensei off his lap and went to pull on a long-sleeved hoodie. Once his injured arm was safely covered, Natsume padded downstairs to Touko’s room.

Gently sliding her door open, Natsume called out. “Touko-san… how are you feeling?”

The woman in question was lying on her back with her eyes closed, face creased and worn. Her eyebrows were pinched in discomfort as she slept.

“Ah-“ Natsume moved to leave, then halted, doing a double take. A faint glimmering stream was trailing from Touko’s barely parted mouth and up through the ceiling. With a rush of dread, Natsume hurried to her side, dropping to his knees and reaching out- then paused, fingers just centimeters away from the silvery wisps. He didn’t know what this was. What if he hurt her?

Slowly, Natsume climbed to his feet and crept out of the room, then ran to the foot of the stairs. “Nyanko Sensei,” He called.

Silence. “Sensei!”

Natsume was rewarded with the sound of a door sliding open. “What?” Nyanko Sensei said grumpily, appearing on the upper landing.

“There’s something wrong with Touko-san,”Natsume explained desperately. “I need your help… I don’t want to do something wrong and hurt her.”

“Ugh, really? Another thing?” Nyanko tilted his nose up with an air of disgust. “She’s sick. Of course there’s something wrong. Deal with it yourself.” He turned to go back down the hall.

“Please! There’s something I’m pretty sure is from a youkai and she’s really weak… please Sensei. At least come and look?”

Nyanko released a long, heavy sigh. “Fine. Show me. But when she’s better, all your tempura shrimp are mine.”

Natsume grimaced at Nyanko’s demand, but he only nodded wordlessly and raced to Touko’s room. Nyanko Sensei lagged behind him, still grumbling. By the time the lucky cat made it into the room, Natsume was already kneeling beside the futon. Nyanko Sensei continued on past the boy and around Touko’s head, inspecting her. The silver trail had become even fainter in the few moments that Natsume had been gone.

After a bit of squinting and sniffing, Nyanko declared bluntly, “It’s her life force.”

“What?” Natsume gasped.

“Her energy, whatever.” Nyanko amended. “This is what that Devourer youkai is stealing from the land. It won’t kill her, it’s just making her-and everything else- weaker.”

“But… hasn’t that youkai been… um… drawing energy from this place for a few days now? I haven’t seen this before.” Natsume said, gesturing at the remaining silver specks.

“Yeah... probably because it suddenly increased how much energy it was stealing.” Nyanko Sensei speculated.

Closing his eyes and exhaling slowly, Natsume tried to calm himself. Touko-san would be fine. She only had to hold out until midnight.

“I don’t like it.” Nyanko declared out of the blue.

Natsume glanced at the lucky cat.

“For the Devourer to take so much energy, only to stop a few minutes later…” Nyanko hunkered down near Touko’s head, eyes gleaming in the low light. “It did something big.”

A new wave of anxiety washed over Natsume. “But it didn’t hurt Touko-san right?”

Nyanko considered for a moment. “No. I don’t sense anything.” He turned to look out the window. The sun had just dropped below the horizon, and the sky was flushed a deep red. “I’m going out to find out what just happened.” He decided.

“What? But I’ll be left-“ Natsume cut off his exclamation, ashamed. He could take care of himself, and Sensei wouldn’t always be around. Making sure the Devourer wasn’t destroying anything and protecting Touko-san were the most important things now.

With a sigh, Nyanko hopped to his feet and gently bumped his head against Natsume’s knee. “Just stay in the house and don’t do anything stupid.” Then he bounded out of the room.

Natsume remained at Touko’s side until the patter of Nyanko’s steps had faded and the front door had slammed shut. Carefully he rinsed and replaced the cloth over her forehead before getting to his feet and slipping out of her room.

\--~~--

Curled up in his futon, Natsume stared blankly at his dark wall, fingers wrapped loosely around his aching arm. Nyanko Sensei still hadn’t returned. The persistent prickle of unease had receded a bit when Shigeru had come back from his errands in town. But Touko hadn’t woken up for dinner, and once Shigeru had turned in early, the fear had resurged in full force. 

A soft clicking at the window interrupted Natsume’s thoughts. Jolted from his near-trance, he frowned. Maybe he had just imagined it? But no, there it was again, a little louder this time.

Natsume slipped out from under the covers and crawled over, staying below the window ledge and out of sight. The tapping sounded out again, now a persistent rhythm. Cautiously, Natsume peered over the edge. A youkai floated just outside, dressed in a simple yukata and paper mask. Its head was bowed and hands pressed together deferentially. It seemed fairly harmless. Natsume stood up fully, and the youkai perked up when he came into view.

Urgently, it tapped at the latch, a clear request for entrance. Wary, Natsume regarded it for a long moment. Seeing his hesitation, it backed up a few feet, its head still demurely tilted down.

With a sigh, Natsume at last flicked the latch up and pulled the window open. The unassuming youkai moved forward again, but remained floating outside the room.

“Well?” Natsume asked. It came out more harshly than he’d expected, and he winced. 

“Sorry- I mean- can I help you?” He tried again. There. Better.

“Thank you for listening to me, Natsume-dono.” The ayakashi began. “Misuzu-sama sent me.”

“Misuzu-san?” Natsume said, surprised.

“Yes. He told me to inform you that he couldn’t come himself because he was busy investigating something with Madara-sama, and that they found a dangerous youkai carrying an unconscious human male. Apparently this is of some importance to you?” The youkai added with a note of curiosity.

Shocked, Natsume couldn’t respond for good few seconds. “I- yes. Did he say anything else about it?” He asked urgently.

“Hmm… Ah, yes, Madara-sama said that the dangerous youkai was ‘the spore’. And… ‘there's a chance her gift may be useful after all’. Does that mean anything to you?”

Automatically, Natsume dropped a hand to his injured arm. So the kidnappings definitely did have something to do with youkai, more specifically the Devourer. That couldn’t be good.

“Yes… yes it does. Thank you. Was there anything else?”

“I believe that was all.” The youkai replied. “Is there any message I may carry back to Misuzu-sama?

“Um… I think just tell him message received… and that I’d like to talk to him soon if possible.” Natsume said slowly.

“Very well. Have a good night then, Natsume-dono.” The youkai bid him farewell before swooping off into the darkness.

Mechanically, Natsume closed the window and returned to his futon, flopping down onto it spread eagle. At least he knew Nyanko Sensei was alright, but… now he had new things to worry about. Hopefully Sensei would be back soon. Why on earth was the Devourer taking humans?

Natsume tucked himself back into his futon and tried to get comfortable. It would be fine. Sensei and Misuzu were patrolling, and Sarigi and Meishime were preparing to seal the dangerous ayakashi. The latter two were probably the strongest youkai he’d ever met, he reassured himself. It would be fine. It had to be fine.

\--~~--

A sudden and violent wave of nausea jerked Natsume from a listless daze. He didn’t remember closing his eyes, and honestly he would’ve been surprised that he’d managed to rest at all if he hadn't suddenly been doing his best to avoid vomiting on the floor. Natsume curled up into fetal position, a hand clamped over his mouth. The air felt heavy, suffocating, and there was a strange buzzing that was making him ache to the bone.

It was somewhat like the way he felt whenever he overexerted his spiritual powers, but a hundred times worse. With a muffled moan, Natsume forced himself to his feet, determined to reach the bathroom before he inevitably threw up- but as abruptly as it had appeared, the nausea vanished. Natsume couldn’t stop himself from collapsing back down in relief.

As he lay there gasping in the wonderfully normal air, Natsume struggled to pull himself together. Clearly, Nyanko Sensei hadn’t returned yet, and while he wasn’t sure exactly what time it was, it couldn't have been more than an hour since he'd drifted off.

No- midnight. It must be midnight. Sarigi and Meishime were sealing the Devourer. He just hadn’t expected… whatever it was they did- to be so powerful. Still, even with what the two youkai had described, that surge had seemed a little too strong.

Picking himself up again, Natsume ran to the window. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for exactly, so he was startled to see a glow shrouding the top of the mountain where the sealing was to take place. As he watched, the light pulsed once, twice- then burst outward and dissipated into nothing.

Stunned, Natsume drew away from the window and sat down on his futon. It was kind of pitiful, how badly he wanted Nyanko Sensei to be here right now. He pulled his knees up to his chest and dropped his forehead on top. He’d faced worse than this before, now wasn’t the time to be weak.

He definitely wouldn’t be getting any more sleep tonight. With a shaky sigh, Natsume curled up again, careful of his injured arm, and waited for dawn.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTICE:  
> I will be in Japan, the holy land of weebs itself, from now until about mid-April. Unfortunately, I can't see myself doing much writing while I'm there, soooo... that means the next chapter will be another epically late one. This is me apologizing in advance. OTL
> 
>  _Now that that's over with_  
>  Hi everyone! I'm so sorry about how late this chapter is, the writing just has not been flowing recently. (I have re-re-rewritten this chapter so many times now good lord) It's taken me so long that I forgot what my own story was about in the mean time, so if you see any discrepancies, please point them out. I will do my best to fix them!

When morning arrived, Natsume greeted it with heavy limbs, a pounding headache, and shadows under his eyes. Shigeru tried to convince him to stay home over breakfast, but Natsume was determined. He had to warn Tanuma and Taki about the new dangers.

Nyanko Sensei still hadn’t shown up by the time Natsume was ready to leave the house, and he was more than a little worried, even though he knew the lucky cat could take care of himself. The icy air that nipped at Natsume’s exposed face when he stepped out the door helped wake him up a bit, but exhaustion still carried him all the way to school in a vague grey haze.

It said something as to how tired he was when he completely failed to notice Nishimura running up behind him.

“Natsume! How are you do- whoa.” Nishimura balked as he circled around Natsume and caught a look at his face. “Dude, you look terrible. Did you sleep at all last night? Or like.. ever?” He leaned in a bit, teasing mixed with concern.

Natsume laughed shakily. “No, I didn’t get much sleep last night but… I’ll be fine.”

Nishimura didn’t seem reassured. “Natsume, you seriously look like a strong breeze would knock you over right now. Are you gonna be okay for school today?”

“I’ll manage,” Natsume said, twitching under his friend’s unusually piercing stare. “It was just a rough night is all.”

The sudden interruption of the warning bell saved Natsume from further scrutiny. Giving Nishimura what he hoped was an apologetic smile; he hurried on ahead to their classroom.

Nishimura’s quiet, worried gaze went unnoticed.

\--~~--

The same exhausted daze that had taken over on his way to school continued through the monotony of morning classes, and eventually Natsume simply gave up trying to stay awake. At least if he slept now, he would have energy to devote to the inevitable discussion with Taki and Tanuma later.

Natsume was shaken from his guilty nap by the ringing of the lunch chime and the sudden scraping-back of chairs and desks. Lifting his head off folded arms, Natsume slowly blinked the sleep from his eyes as bursts of surrounding chatter filtered through to his ears.

“…that disappearance last night, and my dad was saying… second one too…”

“-right? And my brother played with him after school sometimes… we still haven’t told him…”

“…heard they’re bringing in a private detective too, thank goodness...”

All his classmates’ conversations seemed to be revolving around the kidnappings, and Natsume could only twitch at every new mention. Another voice suddenly broke into his thoughts, this one right next to him.

“Hey, Natsume,” Nishimura said, bumping his shoulder. “Hanging in there?”

Natsume turned his head and squinted up at his cheery friend. “Mm hm.” Was Nishimura actually shining or was that still his tiredness talking?

“I was just gonna offer to stay and eat lunch with you, but now I’m thinking someone should definitely stay with you. Kitamoto and the other guys can wait.” Nishimura declared.

“Ah, no, don’t do that.” Did he really look bad enough that he was making Nishimura feel like he had to stay? With some effort, he pushed himself off the desk and into a proper sitting position. “It’s okay Nishimura, you can go. I was planning on finding Tanuma anyway.”

A strange expression flickered across Nishimura’s face, but when he spoke again there was no sign of it. “Alright then… but you’d better go straight to him! I don’t trust you to not pass out in the hallway somewhere.” He insisted with a grin. 

Conjuring up a small smile of his own, Natsume agreed easily enough to his friend’s demands. He hoped Tanuma and Taki would be in their respective classrooms for lunch though, because he was pretty sure he didn’t have the energy to look all over the school to find them. 

Nishimura nodded, satisfied, before strolling out of the room with a bright, “See you in a bit then,”

Once the other boy turned away, Natsume let the smile drop from his face. He just had to quickly ask Tanuma and Taki if they could all meet up after school. Then he could come back, eat his hastily scraped-together bento, and, if he was lucky, maybe sleep a little. 

\--~~--

The moment the classroom door closed behind him, Nishimura felt his cheery grin fade. It was clear that something beyond mere exhaustion was affecting Natsume, but of course his cryptic, soft-spoken, yet so, so strong friend would never say anything about it. And Nishimura hated to see Natsume withdraw into himself like this, the way he did when he was hurting. The way he had been when he’d first arrived.

He released the door handle behind him and started down the hall.

Nishimura had his suspicions- and he was pretty sure that Kitamoto did too, even if they never specifically talked about it- but they were only suspicions. Nishimura was too afraid to bring it up with Natsume, who even now, all these months later- still sometimes had this fragile, hopeful air around him, like he was afraid to stay and trust them and yet unable to bring himself to leave. Nishimura was pretty sure that pressing Natsume on all his bouts of exhaustion, sudden injuries, and unexplained absences would be the fastest route to chasing him away. And if there was something Nishimura swore he would never, ever do, it would be to hurt one of his friends like that.

Nishimura’s dark thoughts were cut off when he caught sight of Kitamoto and proceeded to greet him with an enthusiastic tackle. The other guys all laughed, used to their antics by now, and they all settled down to eat.

Once the others were caught up in some argument over the latest episode of a new TV drama, Nishimura leaned in towards Kitamoto to whisper in his ear. “I think I’ll go back to class a bit earlier today. Natsume wasn’t doing so good and I want to make sure he’s alright.”

“Ah. What did he get himself into this time?” Kitomoto murmured, taking another bite of his lunch.

“I’m not sure,” Nishimura replied. “But he looks like he hasn’t slept at all lately. And…”

“Hm?”

“…Nothing I guess.”

Kitomoto gave Nishimura a knowing look. “Well that’s fine. Someone’s gotta keep an eye on him. I guess we’ll just have to count on you” He added with a dramatic sigh.

Nishimura jabbed his laughing friend in the ribs and squawked in mock outrage.

It was somewhat frustrating though, Nishimura decided as he went back to his sandwich. He knew that Tanuma was privy to at least some of the secrets Natsume was keeping, but somehow the dark-haired boy’s lips were sealed tighter than Natsume’s in that department.

Well, it didn’t matter anyway. Natsume would tell them when he was ready. And for his friends, patience was something Nishimura could do.

\--~~--

When Natsume dragged himself down to Tanuma’s classroom, he was pleasantly surprised to find both Tanuma and Taki standing just outside the classroom engaged in conversation.

Before Natsume could catch their attention though, Taki glanced up- did a double take, blinking- and called out with a bright grin. “Oh, Natsume!”

Tanuma immediately looked up as well, and the two made their way over to Natsume.

“This is pretty rare, huh? What are you doing here?” Taki continued. From anyone else it might’ve sounded accusing, but from her it was only a bright curiosity. “Also- wow, um- you look like you didn’t get much sleep last night Natsume.”

“Maybe I’m worrying too much, but nothing… happened… right?” Tanuma asked, a trace of careful concern in his voice.

“No, no,” Natsume hurried to reassure him. “Well… there was something last night, but it didn’t have anything to do with me. I just couldn’t get back to sleep afterwards I guess.” Natsume avoided looking directly at his friends and rushed ahead to his point. “That’s part of the reason I came over here. I was thinking we could all meet up after school? If that’s okay with you two. There’s some stuff I need to tell you, but… I’m hoping Nyanko Sensei will come back before then.”

“Of course it’s okay with us Natsume,” Taki said patiently. “And I’m free. Actually, I’ll have the house to myself today if you’d like to come over later. Tanuma?”

“I can come as well. Dad said he’d be home all day today, so I don’t have any chores to take care of.” Tanuma answered after a moment of thought. “So meet after school at your place?”

“Yup. How does that sound, Natsume?”

Natsume could practically feel a weight lifting off his chest. “Thank you guys.”

Tanuma smiled silently and shook his head a little, while Taki giggled softly. “No problem,” She said. “I should run back so I can actually eat before class starts. You too Natsume.” She added, flapping a hand at him teasingly.

Natsume laughed. “I will, I will.”

\--~~--

The sun was blindingly bright, but offered absolutely no warmth to the crowds of students hurrying about in the bitingly cold outdoors. Natsume exhaled a puff of white mist as he scanned the grounds for Taki and Tanuma. After another round of in-class power naps, and with the promise of meeting with his friends, Natsume felt a lot more energized. The dark cloud of youkai-troubles hanging over his head had lightened a little.

“Yo, Natsume,” A hand tapped his shoulder from behind. Natsume started and spun around to face Kitamoto, Nishimura at his side.

“Whoa, sorry,” Kitamoto immediately apologized, drawing his hand back. “I should’ve known that would startle you. We just came to check on you before heading home. You doing alright?”

“Yeah, I got a little sleep in class, so I’m feeling better now. I’ll be going back with Tanuma and Taki-san. Am I really enough trouble that you need to ‘check on me’ though?” Natsume asked with a somewhat dry smile.

Yes, you are,” Kitamoto informed him equally dryly, while Nishimura snickered in the background. “Most troublesome friend we’ve ever had.”

Natsume sighed, a reluctantly affectionate smile creeping over his face.

“But I’m glad you’re okay. See you tomorrow?” Kitamoto said warmly.

“Yeah, see you then.”

Natsume watched their retreating figures as they walked past the gates, Nishimura passionately bemoaning the frigid temperatures once again. He would have to figure out a way to protect them from the Devourer without getting them actually dragged into the whole mess. Now was a time he could really use Nyanko Sensei’s help. 

Another minute passed before Tanuma walked out of the school, tucking his nose into his scarf when the icy air hit his face. Natsume lifted a hand to wave him over, but Tanuma had already spotted him.

“I swear it’s colder today than it was yesterday, which is both impressive and terrifying.” Were the first words Tanuma grumbled out when he got within earshot.

Natsume’s huff of laughter misted out in a white cloud.

“Taki’s not here ye- oh nevermind, there she is,” Tanuma finished as the girl in question jogged towards them.

“Hi guys,” Taki greeted, blowing into her gloveless hands. “Wow it’s cold. Let’s hurry home please?”

“Absolutely yes,” Tanuma said fervently. Natsume laughed again and Tanuma bumped his shoulder, an embarrassed smile on his face. Taki shook her head at both of them and lead the charge for home.

\--~~--

“Oh yeah, Natsume,” Tanuma started as they all shed their coats and shoes in Taki’s entryway. “I didn’t get the chance to ask earlier, but is your arm doing alright?”

Taki looked back at the two boys inquisitively. 

“Ah. Actually I… I was too tired this morning to take a proper look at it.” Natsume admitted as he glanced down at his sleeve. “I should probably do that now though, if you wouldn’t mind helping me.”

“No problem,” Tanuma said as Taki led them to the dining room. “Taki, do you have a first aid kid? Or some bandage rolls?”

“I think so, but… Natsume, you’re hurt?” She inquired worriedly.

“Ah… A little?” Natsume said delicately.

“He got attacked yesterday.” Tanuma said, far more bluntly. Taki inhaled, short and sharp.

“Tanuma-“

“Then we’re taking a look at it right away,” She said firmly. “Stay here, I’ll be back in a minute.”

Natsume glared weakly at Tanuma as the door clacked shut behind her. “Did you really have to tell her like that?”

“You’re not getting out of us making sure you’re safe and taking care of yourself.” Was his friend’s only response.

Natsume sighed in defeat. “You’re probably not going to like what I’m about to tell you then.”

Tanuma glanced at him sharply. “You haven’t been dragged into another dangerous exorcism job or something, right?”

“No, no. But…” 

“But?”

“Let’s- let’s wait for Taki to get back, then I’ll tell both of you.”

Tanuma eyed him suspiciously, but fell silent.

Natsume and Tanuma only had to endure a few minutes of awkward quiet before Taki reappeared with bandages and a tray of teacups. She set the latter down on the low table between the three of them before turning to Natsume, all business. 

“Alright, let’s see this injury.” Taki said, gesturing brusquely at Natsume’s arm.

Reluctantly, Natsume pulled up his sleeve and began unwinding the bandages. He had only seen Taki get like this once or twice before, but when she did, there was no point in arguing with her.

This time around, the gauze that Natsume peeled off was still clean, with only the very bottom layer over the cut showing a few stains of rusted red. He was grateful for that at least, and his injury had been paining him less as the day went on, Natsume realized. His relief lasted all the way until the final strip had been removed and he turned his arm over. He gasped.

The cut itself had closed up nicely, and there was very little redness or swelling as Natsume had been expecting. What he hadn’t prepared for was the black that lay like a stripe of ink in the slash up his arm, or the equally-dark little swirls along his skin that radiated out from the main injury.

“Oh my goodness, Natsume!” Taki exclaimed. “That’s… a bit worse than I was expecting. How much does it hurt? Can I touch your arm?”

Natsume nodded numbly. Taki gently caught up his wrist and elbow, shifting his arm to inspect the injury before busying herself with the bandages. “It doesn’t look infected at least, and if you got this… yesterday? Then it’s healing pretty fast. Still, this really should’ve been looked at by a doctor-“

“Natsume.” 

Natsume looked up to meet Tanuma’s wide eyed gaze.

“Yesterday, when I helped you… it wasn’t like this, was it?

“…No. No it wasn’t.” Natsume said unsteadily. “What do you see?”

Taki stopped from where she had just been pressing the gauze to his skin. Blinked. Then her look sharpened. “Is there something else I can’t see?” She asked quietly.

“…Yeah,” Tanuma said, “it looks almost like… someone poured black paint over your arm. Like right along the cut, and it dripped down the sides.” Tanuma glanced back up to Natsume. “And… it’s not blurry at all.”

Natsume let out a long breath. “I see something… a little different.” He said, eyes tracing one of the longer spirals. “But that’s close enough.”

“Should I still wrap it up?” Taki asked uncertainly after a moment.

“I think so,” Natsume said. “I just hope it’s not... cursed, or anything like that.”

Both Taki and Tanuma looked suitably horrified.

“Is there anything we can do for it now?” Tanuma asked after a moment, gesturing helplessly.

A trickle of dread slipped down Natsume’s spine. “I… I don’t know.” He admitted. “This is something I need to ask Sensei about. Or Hinoe maybe.”

Taki tilted her head a little. “Hinoe?”

“Ah-“ Natsume hesitated, regretting the slip. “She’s another youkai that helped me when I was c- she helps me sometimes.”

“Oh.” Another pause. Then Tanuma spoke up, “And Ponta isn’t around to help either? I think you mentioned that earlier.”

“Yeah. He left yesterday afternoon after we figured out why Touko-san is sick.” Natsume said, head dropping to rest on the table as Taki wrapped up the ends of gauze on his arm. “That’s kinda what I wanted to talk to you about actually.”

Task complete, Taki joined Tanuma in giving Natsume full attention. Under their gazes, Natsume teetered for a moment on the edge of not telling them, of finding another way to keep them safe. But he… he trusted them, and with so many things going wrong, and Nyanko Sensei missing on top of it… he couldn’t do it alone. 

With a burst of almost rebellious determination, Natsume pushed past his own hesitation. “So, last week I learned from… a couple different youkai… that this god-level youkai escaped its seal and came this way. And that youkai is the reason for all this winter weather and the colds going around.”

Tanuma frowned. “Did you know that the one time you helped me carry those bags home? I only remember you telling me about the recent cold snap.”

“Oh, I… didn’t want to worry you.” Natsume said a bit guiltily.

Tanuma slumped. “I knew there was something else you weren’t saying back then.”

Natsume ducked his head, but stumbled on. “S-so the two youkai I talked to were planning to seal that other youkai- they called it the Devourer?- and then go home, but I think… I think something went wrong.” He paused, uncertain.

“…They were supposed to do it last night at midnight, but I was up then, and I saw this… explosion, I guess- up on the mountain, and I don’t know much about spells like that, but that kind of reaction isn’t good. And there was a flare of energy that made me… sick for a while. Actually, Tanuma, maybe you felt something?”

“Last night…” Tanuma mused. “You know what, I did actually wake up with a headache at one point, though I’m not sure if it was midnight. Did it last about two minutes?”

Natsume nodded. “Yeah, two or three. That’s why I didn’t get much sleep last night. And… I learned what is was that attacked me at your place. One of the youkai said it was called a ‘spore’, and it… it kidnaps children to take to the Devourer.”

A moment passed as his friends blinked. Took that information in.

“So you’re saying… you could’ve been _kidnapped_ yesterday at my house?” Tanuma said slowly, incredulously, voice rising with every word.

Natsume’s silence said it all.

“Those two children that disappeared recently…” Taki said cautiously. “That was the spore as well?”

“Yes,” Natsume said, “that’s what I wanted to warn you guys about today. We need to figure out how to protect you two when you… can’t see the danger.”

Taki leaned back, already deep in thought. “It’s a good thing we’re at my house then. My grandpa’s collection might be our best chance for protections like that.”

“We already know it’s not affected by purifications if it was on my house and temple grounds so easily.” Tanuma added.

“Actually…” Taki spoke up again “You said the Devourer was making people sick?”

Natsume nodded slowly. “I was told it was stealing people’s energy to… feed itself.”

Taki winced a bit, but continued. “A bunch of protective seals have been falling off the walls lately, and when I looked them up, they were sort-of barrier spells to stop youkai from… well, to paraphrase- forcibly taking good things out of or putting harmful things in the house. I thought the seals were just getting old, but now I’m thinking…”

 

“That… sounds right, but I don’t know enough about that kind of thing.” Natsume said after a moment of thought.

An air of gloom settled over the room.

“I wish Nyanko-Sensei was here!” Natsume suddenly burst out, fueled by worried frustration. “There’s so many things I need to ask him about now, and he’s _gone_ , and I just…” He trailed off into suddenly-ashamed silence.

Taki quickly shook herself out of her stunned state to shuffle to Natsume’s side and gently lay a hand on his shoulder. Tanuma subtly shifted a bit closer as well before speaking. “Ponta can take care of himself, don’t worry. And I know we’re not quite the same thing, but we can still help you figure stuff out. Think you have anything about this Devourer in your grandpa’s old books, Taki?”

“Ooh, yes!” She exclaimed, lighting up a bit. “And I can make more of those protection seals! The book had a bunch of different barriers as well.”

“That would be good,” Natsume said, “I can put some in our house to protect Touko-san.”

“I think we could all use a few.” Tanuma said firmly.

“Right!” Taki said brightly, hopping to her feet and clapping her hands together. “Shall we get started? I can look at the protective seals since I already know where that book is. And maybe we can even find something to help with your arm! Ohh, there’s so much to look for…”

As Natsume shared a grin with Tanuma and they followed their enthusiastic friend, Natsume realized he felt lighter than he had in days. Somehow, even though he should’ve been worried that more people had gotten caught up in youkai things… he was too overwhelmed by the relief of finally getting somewhere and having friends to help him figure things out. Maybe he would be able to fix all this after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also if anyone's interested, I made a pretty rough sketch of how I've been picturing [Meishime](https://www.deviantart.com/stormfen/art/Meishime-783025828)


	7. Interlude: Nyanko

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nyanko's adventures in the forest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAH not dead
> 
> Thanks websky for motivating me to get this out, like, a week earlier ;)  
> Thanks AnnReading for giving me Natsume's location

As the door clattered shut behind him, Nyanko took a moment to recheck the few wards he had on the house. Really, as long as the brat just stayed put, nothing would happen to him. He wasn’t worried about Natsume or Touko. No, he was just… 

Just...

Ugh. He was getting all sentimental and attached the longer he stayed with these humans. 

He bounded out the gate and towards the dusk-shadowed forest.

\--~~--

“Oy,” Nyanko called up into the trees. A cluster of tiny masked youkai there collectively squeaked and jumped in surprise. “Have any of you seen that meddling cow lately?”

The little group on the branch above shivered and squeezed closer together. Nyanko rolled his eyes. “Misuzu. Have you seen Misuzu?”

The youkai chattered amongst themselves before the front-most one frantically shook its head.

“Hmph. I don’t know what I was expecting.”

\--~~--

“Either of you know where Misuzu went?” Nyanko barked at a pair of tengu hurrying along the path.

One stared, indignant, while the other sniffed. “Rude. And we’re not from around here.” The two picked up their pace and vanished between the trees.

“Fine, fine.”

Hmm. Surely there was someone in the area who could point him to Misuzu.

\--~~--

The moon was just beginning to glint over the mountaintops by the time Nyanko trotted up the edge of the river and peered into the unusually dark water. “Hey, kappa.” 

No response. A bird warbled softly overhead.

“You’d better not be drying up on land somewhere again.”

More silence.

“Kappa, I know you’re down there!”

Another moment passed, then bubbles began rising near the center of the river. The roar of the current grew a little louder.

“Finally, wher-“ Nyanko pulled up short when, instead the round head of the kappa, a sleek, scaly dragon snout poked above the water. “Oh.”

The lucky cat and river dragon regarded each other for a moment. “Well, you’re not the kappa.” Nyanko stated, rather unnecessarily. “Where’d he go?”

The dragon snorted. “There are several kappa in this river. I’m afraid you’ll have to specify.”

Nyanko considered for a few seconds. “I don’t know his name, but he ends up stranded on land like an idiot ‘cause he wanders too far and never brings water. Does that ring a bell?”

The dragon sank deeper into the water and sighed, bubbles popping up around his nose. “Unfortunately, yes. That particular kappa is currently in underwater hibernation thanks to this unnatural cold. Was there anything urgent you needed from him?”

“Huh.” Nyanko absorbed that information. “I guess not. But I’ve never seen you around here before. I’d honestly thought this river didn’t have a guardian.”

“I keep to myself most of the time.” He said, amused. “There’s enough on my plate what with managing the river and this side of the forest, and I find that dealing with other youkai is too troublesome.” The ‘like you’ went unsaid. “I’ve only surfaced now because I had to figure out why so many of the youkai under my protection were falling ill and freezing.” If the dragon had had eyebrows they would’ve been lifted. “The cause of which I now know. Was there anything else you wanted before I return to my precious solitude?”

“Yeah, actually. Any chance you’ve seen Misuzu recently?” Nyanko asked.

“As a matter of fact, he was just here telling me about the Devourer. He went up toward the mountain if you’re looking for him,” The dragon said, flicking a slender tail in the general direction.

“Ah, I should’ve expected that. For such a big youkai he really is a slippery one.” Nyanko shifted to his wolf form in a burst of smoke and prepared to take off. A voice that sounded suspiciously like Natsume’s nagged in the corner of his mind. “And. Thanks.” He grumbled quietly, only barely turning his head back. Then with a huff, he shot off into the sky.

Surprise flickered over the guardian’s face before his mouth curved into a grin. “You’re quite welcome, Madara.”

\--~~--

Madara had only been flying for a few minutes before he spotted a familiar figure moving through a gap in the shadowed forest. He dove, landing in an explosion of leaves and dust. “Sarigi.”

“Well hello there Madara-sama. How unexpected.” Sairigi said placidly, tilting his hood back. His horn glinted just a little too brightly in the low light. “What brings you here?”

Madara eyed him. “The Devourer just pulled something big. One of the humans I stay with is sick, and today she got even worse because of it. I’m pretty sure it was a major energy drain from this whole area, and I don’t like the implications. I was looking for Misuzu, but you’ll do too. What’s going on?”

Sarigi tilted his head, considering. “Even if I told you, what would you do about it?”

“…I was hoping you could tell me. I have a feeling this Devourer is even more dangerous than everyone is expecting. I’d rather do whatever it takes to keep it contained now to avoid trouble later.” Madara narrowed his eyes. “And I was looking for protections against its energy drain. Are you going to withhold information from us?”

“Valid reasons,” Sairigi said, a touch of amusement coloring his voice. “I don’t suppose a certain human boy being in danger has anything to do with it?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Hah. Well, it just so happens I have a little dilemma of my own, so how about we trade?” Sarigi suggested. “I’ll tell you what you want to know, and you help me clear this mountain of any stray youkai. The only youkai that are still this close to the Devourer are the really stubborn ones, and I don’t have enough sway among them to make them leave. You seem like the sort of authority that the others would listen to though.”

“When I suggested I was ready to help take care of the Devourer, this wasn’t exactly what I was expecting.” Madara heaved a deep sigh. “Fine, I’ll do it. But I can’t guarantee those youkai will listen to me either. Although… I suppose I could just force them out.”

“Thank you.” Sarigi said, almost cheerfuly. “I’ll hold you to your end of the bargain then. What specifically would you like to know?”

Frowning, Madara settled back on his haunches to think. “I guess…” He started slowly. “Where did the Devourer come from in the first place? I’d never heard of it before. And why is it here now?”

Sarigi sighed. “Straight to the heart of the problem I see. It’s quite a long story.”

“We have time. Tell me.” Madara said bluntly.

A tiny smile twitched from beneath Sarigi’s hood. “All right.” He leaned back against a nearby tree trunk. “I used to be human, did you know?”

Madara squinted. “You?”

“Indeed. When the Devourer first appeared as a threat, nearly… oh, about a thousand years ago; I was one of the exorcists who worked to seal it.”

“Hmm…” Madara’s tail swished around his feet. “And that went swimmingly I see.”

A soft chuckle. “Yes, well. At the time, we did actually succeed in locking the Devourer away. Of course, not without many… sacrifices.”

“Sacrifices like yourself? I assume that was when you became an ayakashi.”

Sarigi nodded. “We had gathered all the best exorcists and spell crafters, all those with powerful spiritual energy. The threat of the Devourer had risen out of nowhere, and we were unprepared. It was only later that I discovered it had originally been a weak battlefield scavenger that had started eating fallen youkai and scraps of spiritual energy from endless conflicts between lords, then it graduated to actively hunting youkai, and all too soon it could consume ayakashi and human souls alike. In any case, it had begun ravaging the country, destroying cities and stealing the life energy and souls of the people. Myself, and the handful of others chosen with me, had suddenly become Japan’s final hope.”

A pause.

“Very dramatic.” Madara remarked. But his voice was missing its usual mocking tone.

“By the time we had hastily put together a seal that could actually work; the Devourer had swept down south. We finally caught up with it in Kumamoto. Our exorcist warriors managed to hold it, with many casualties, long enough for the rest of us to trap it in place on the sealing circle.”

Sarigi dropped his head. “We knew we only had one chance. Once the temporary binding chains broke, there would be no one left to fight it again. But even knowing the danger, we were so sure our seal would work. The best of the best had come together to craft the spell, and we were overconfident. The power that could be drawn from the ayakashi and human souls the Devourer consumed… it was beyond anything we could comprehend at the time. We surrounded it, began our chant, poured our energy into the circle… and right away we knew something was wrong.”

Another moment passed as Sarigi deliberated. “Have you ever actively powered a sealing spell?”

“…Yes. But I’ve never sealed anything using human creations, so I imagine it’s a bit different.”

“Most likely,” Sarigi said, “but it’s similar enough. When you sealed the youkai, you used your energy to push, and you were in control.”

Madara nodded warily.

“In the Devourer’s case, once we added our power, we lost control. The spell was technically still doing what it was designed to, but our energy was being absorbed at a dangerous rate. It only took a minute for the exorcists to begin collapsing. Our only comfort was that, even as people fell, we were making progress, and the Devourer was being forced below ground where we wanted it. Really, knowing what I know now about its strength, I’m amazed the spell worked at all.”

“But then…” Sarigi lifted his head to study Madara again. “It’s somewhat difficult to explain unless you were in the spell, but it was like we hit a wall, some critical point stopping us from sealing the Devourer any farther. But with all the energy flowing through the circle, that one little hiccup caused the entire thing to… crack, I suppose, and it exploded on us.”

“And you all died,” Madara concluded.

“Very nearly,” Sarigi said quietly. “One lived for a short time longer. Of the small amount of information that remains about the Devourer, most was written by him. And I… I still don’t know why I, out of all the people there, was the one to become an ayakashi.” He tilted his head towards the sky. “Oh, your friend is here.”

“Hm?” Madara looked up just in time to see a shadow block out the moonlight and Misuzu crash through the canopy. “Oh there you are. Took you long enough.” He said grumpily.

Misuzu’s laugh rumbled through the clearing. “I heard you ran all over the forest looking for me. Good evening Sarigi-sama.”

“Good evening,” Sarigi replied as Madara bristled.

Sarigi turned back to Madara. “Madara-sama, as for why the Devourer came to this town… I’m afraid it was simply an unfortunate coincidence of this being the nearest source of humans with the highest concentration of spiritual energy.” He pushed off the tree and stood up straight. “After a thousand years of study, I am confident the sealing spell will work. The Grand Lady and I will do our utmost to stop it here and now.”

Madara silently inclined his head. “Anything else?” 

Sarigi thought for a moment. “No, I believe that is all. I imagine I will leave as soon as the re-sealing is complete however, so… this is my farewell. And thank you for your help.”

With a deep bow to Madara and Misuzu, he swept off into the deep shadow of the forest.

The two of the watched the place where Sarigi had vanished for a moment longer before Madara huffed. “Well then.” He glanced at Misuzu. “Let’s clear all these pesky youkai out quickly so I can go home. What a pain.”

An ever-unsettling grin crept over Misuzu’s face. “I don’t know about that. This could be quite fun.”

\--~~--

Misuzu stood on the edge of a small niche carved into the mountainside and stared down the slope and over vast forest below. He settled himself on the ledge; the panoramic view spread out before him, then flicked his gaze to the sky. “Not much longer till midnight.” He said idly.

Madara gave a noncommittal grunt and yawned, tucking his legs beneath him and curling up. “I suppose we’ll need to leave the mountain as well.”

“Of course,” Misuzu agreed, “but it is likely in our best interests to keep watch until then. In case any of the more… stubborn youkai decide to return early.”

A slightly manic gleam shone deep in Misuzu’s eye. Madara noted it, then turned away and closed his eyes with a sigh.

The two great youkai remained like that for an indeterminable amount of time, the moon’s steady glow illuminating their surroundings and a gentle breeze ruffling hair and fur. With such peaceful surroundings, Madara startled when Misuzu suddenly reared up and stared intently down at the winding path below.

“What?” Madara grumbled. “Don’t tell me there’s something going wrong now.”

“Unfortunately, it seems I’ll have to disappoint.” Misuzu said slowly. “There’s a Spore coming up the mountain.”

Madara blinked. Then he reluctantly pushed to his feet to peer over the edge as well. “Huh. I wonder where it’s going?”

They watched the Spore as it climbed, closer and closer until- 

“…Is it carrying a human?” Madara asked, somewhat rhetorically. 

A displeased noise rumbled from deep in Misuzu’s chest. “It must be taking that human to the Devourer. I don’t like it.” 

Madara narrowed his eyes. “Sarigi mentioned that the Devourer eats human souls. I wonder…”

“We’re following it.” Misuzu announced. And with no further warning, leapt off the ledge.

\--~~--

Madara and Misuzu stood on the steep mountain slope, still windblown from the rushed flight, staring silently at the edge of the “absolutely no entry” barrier that Sarigi had set up. The spore continued its steady climb on the path above them.

Madara flopped to the ground with a disgusted grunt. “I cannot believe we couldn’t catch up to a little black blob. And who sets up a barrier that only blocks strong youkai?” 

Glancing up at the moon, which was near directly overhead, Misuzu sighed. “It’s too close to midnight to break in and safely return in time to warn Sarigi-sama. However, I do have one of my frogs with me, who should be able to get past the barrier and carry a message to him.

Irritated, Madara closed his eyes. “Why does everything have to be so complicated? This was supposed to be a short investigation. Short.” After a moment he growled out, “There’s not enough time left. Send the frog to Sarigi and we’ll get off this mountain. I… I need to find a youkai to send a message to the brat at home.”

Misuzu raised an eyebrow. “Natsume-dono?”

“Yes, him,” Madara huffed, “I should find that river ayakashi from earlier as well. He said something about being the guardian for this area. Maybe he’ll know where the Spore picked up that human.”

A long moment passed as Misuzu eyed Madara carefully. “Very well then.” A frog leapt out of Misuzu’s mane and disappeared into the bushes. “I know of a few ayakashi who owe me a favor. I’ll ask one of them to carry a message to Natsume-dono. Follow me.”

\--~~--

The slender, unassuming youkai listened quietly as Misuzu gave his message. Then he turned to Madara. “And you, Madara-dono? Is there anything you wish to add?”

“…Tell him the youkai we saw was a Spore. And… and tell him that things aren’t going as well as we’d hoped. I hope not, but her gift might be useful after all.”

The youkai bowed. “Understood. I will be back soon.”

\--~~--

Once the messenger had departed for Natsume’s home, Misuzu glanced up at the near-overhead moon and turned to Madara. “I’ll be taking my leave now. I have a few… sources I wish to contact tonight.”

Madara snorted. “Right. Well, I’m going to see if that guardian ayakashi I met earlier knows anything, and then I’m going straight home to sleep. What an exhausting night.”

The two of them took off in their respective directions. Madara drifted lazily along on a low air current, in no hurry now that all the panic was over. He deliberately pushed aside any potential thoughts about Natsume. The brat was overreacting, and with any luck, there wouldn’t be any more trouble from this whole mess.

Several minutes passed in that same easy thought, Madara following the steady curve of the river. The wide stretch of rapids where he’d been searching for the kappa soon came into view, and he began his descent-

A bright flash of light from behind-

A thundering explosion clawed at his eardrums-

A shockwave that blasted him from the sky-

Staticky white filled Madara’s vision as he tumbled to the ground. When he reached it, he plunged into black oblivion.

\--~~--

What felt like eons later, Madara slowly pried his eyes open with a low rumble of pain. He was collapsed on scraggly grass on the riverbank, the chattering stream annoyingly loud in his sensitive ears. Rolling over, he squinted at the sky. The sun was low, reds and oranges just beginning to paint themselves over the horizon. A day. He’d spent a whole day knocked out and vulnerable. With a groan, Madara rolled over and stumbled to his feet, nearly collapsing again as one of his legs gave out from under him. He resigned himself to limping heavily along the water’s edge, too weak to consider flying.

If Natsume hadn’t been worried before, he definitely would be now, Madara mused. Well, it wasn’t dark just yet. As long as he kept moving, he could probably still find the river guardian and get home in time. He had a lot of questions now.

When Madara made it around the river bend, he was surprised to find the dragon already there, head just above the water’s surface. “Guardian,” he called out.

The ayakashi turned its head, rising out of the water, and Madara ground to a halt. The once sleek and strong dragon was now dull and grayed, scales falling out in spots, and long body floating limp just below the surface.

Madara remained quiet for a moment. Even he knew this was no time to be flippant. “Is it really that bad?”

The guardian rasped out a sigh. “It is. Even as powerful as you are, I’m surprised you survived that blast this close to the mountain.”

“Hah. I certainly didn’t come out unscathed.” Madara allowed himself a bitter laugh. “If you’re like this… how many are dead?”

“Thousands.” The dragon said quietly. “The weaker ones simply couldn’t hold their energy together. I’m sure there are some farther away who survived, but in my domain… very few are left. All those who remain, even the powerful ayakashi, are fragile and recovering. The land is damaged as well. Whoever it was that tried to trap the Devourer, they failed. Badly. Though I’m sure that’s obvious already.”

Madara nodded. “Right.” He sighed. “Before I go… I may end up coming to you again to try and fix this mess. Do you have a name you can give to me?”

The dragon smiled. “Call me Suishou. Good luck, Madara.”

Madara blinked. “I guess I should be glad the local guardian already knows who I am, huh?” He said a bit ruefully. “Goodbye, Suishou.”And with that, he turned and limped for home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is there an actual canon name/location of Natsume's town? 'Cause I'm just making it up as I go


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'know, it's summer and I thought I was gonna be able to get a lot more writing done, but then life was like nOPE, remember u actually have 400 summer activities and then ur gonna be too tired to do anything else afterward lol suck it
> 
> So yeah, my update schedule will continue to be crap

“Hey, Natsume,” Tanuma called. “I think I've got something here.”

Natsume looked up from his own dusty tome and began squeezing past the tight shelves to Tanuma. “On what?” 

“The Devourer.” Tanuma said, flipping the page. “It may- oh.”

“What?” Natsume peered over his shoulder “Oh.”

Tanuma glanced up at him. “I don’t suppose you know what the Devourer looks like?”

Natsume slowly shook his head. “No… but if this is anything like the real thing, I don’t think I want to see him.”

They stared at the gruesome sketch. Dozens of spindly black legs were inked deep into the page, the main body obscured by smudges of miasma. A mountain of faceless corpses surrounded it, entirely without sign of blood or injury, and somehow all the more terrifying because of it. The longer Natsume watched, the more he could've sworn the image was moving, slowly twitching and peeling off the page. But when he blinked, the image returned to stillness.

“I wonder who drew this?” Tanuma said, tracing a finger down the page.

“Ooh, you guys found something?” Taki appeared around the corner of the shelf, a stack of books in her arms.

“I think so,” Tanuma said, “Though besides this drawing, there doesn’t seem to be much here.” He flipped to the back of the age to reveal a mess of scribbled writing. “Only a couple lines of this are in Japanese, and even that’s in really old calligraphy. The rest just looks like gibberish.”

“Hmm…” Taki leaned in to inspect the book. “Well, what does the bit you can read say?”

“Umm… Let’s see.” Tanuma slowly drew his finger along the lines as he read. “It's a bit archaic, but I’m pretty sure it says something like ‘Devourer of souls and harbinger of the endless winter.’” Tanuma squinted at the words again. “I guess it could be some other youkai- which is a scary thought, ‘cause then there's two of these things- but its sounds close enough to what we're looking for…”

“No, I think this is the Devourer,” Natsume said suddenly. “The rest of the writing… it looks like- well, it's youkai writing. I might be able to read it.”

Taki and Tanuma blinked in unison. “Really?”

“Try, try,” Taki whispered enthusiastically.

Holding the book flat, Natsume took a deep breath. He let his eyes relax, nearly crossing as he focused on the words. Bit by bit they came to life, twisting themselves into an intelligible form, their meaning trickling into his mind.

“It’s… an account by an old exorcist that describes… how to seal the Devourer. And… that exorcist’s final words.” Natsume allowed his eyes to drop shut, breaking the spell. “It sounds like he was dying when he wrote this.” 

A sharp spike of a headache suddenly made itself known behind Natsume’s eyes. “Oh. Ow. I’ve read youkai messages before, but this is the first time I’ve really _tried_.” Natsume passed the book back to a hovering Tanuma as he pressed a hand over his face. The pain slowly began receding. 

“Sorry Natsume, we shouldn’t have made you do that.” Taki said guiltily.

“Are you gonna be okay?” Tanuma asked hesitantly.

“I’m fine, I promise. And I would’ve needed to do it anyway.” Natsume reassured them, blinking away the final pricks of discomfort. “But look! We have a lead on the Devourer now. Taki, is there a paper and pen here somewhere? I want to write it down before I forget what I read.”

Taki jumped to her feet. “I’ll be right back.”

\--~~--

The three friends huddled around a low table, staring at Natsume’s notes. They were quiet, taking in the full consequence of the story there.

“Something this big… it must have happened a long time ago. I can’t recall learning anything like this in history.” Tanuma said. “Of course the youkai stuff wouldn’t be there, but still, this many deaths? If all the exorcists this guy described were really that powerful and they still barely won… what does that mean for us?”

“I wonder where Sarigi-san was for all of this.” Natsume murmured. “No wonder he didn’t want to tell us anything about it. This is… awful.”

“Sarigi?” Tanuma questioned.

“Oh. He’s one of the youkai I mentioned earlier. Who told me and Sensei about the Devourer. He said he helped seal the Devourer, and I was wondering how he fit into this story.” Natsume explained sheepishly, tapping the paper in front of him.

“Huh,” Tanuma paused, eyebrow raised. “And the other youkai is the Grand Lady we talked about at your place the other day? What’s her name?”

“Yeah, but… I actually can’t tell you. She kind of forbid it.” Natsume said apologetically.

“Well that’s not concerning at all.” Tanuma said mildly. “But I’m glad you’re telling us what you can. We’ll fix this.”

Natsume flushed. “T-thank you. Both of you.” 

Taki smiled encouragingly. “I really think I’ll be able to help with this.” She said, sketching a small circle in the corner of the paper. “Based on what this guy wrote, it’s a super simple spell, just amped up to a thousand. The binding chains they used before the seal seem a little more complicated, but I might be able to work it out. For us, it looks like the trick is going to be getting enough spiritual energy to power the exorcism. I know we’re pretty sure whatever… Sarigi-san? did last night didn’t work, but do you think you could still talk to him? Though if this spell circle nearly failed when the original exorcists used it, clearly some changes have to be made.”

Natsume hesitated. “I’ll try to find him, but… it was always Nyanko-Sensei who brought me to him, so I don’t know how I’ll get to him again. And depending on how badly the spell went wrong last night, it might not be safe to go to Yatsuhara right now. If Sensei still hasn’t come back… I’m- I’m worried.” He mumbled.

“I’m sure Ponta’s fine.” Tanuma said firmly. “If it’s not safe to go into the forest, then we’ll wait. Plus, we should probably make protections from the Devourer before we do anything. Taki, did you find that talismans book you were looking for?”

“Oh, yes!” Taki spun to the pile of books at her side and rummaged through them. “Here.” She carefully paged through the old, stained paper before stopping at a dog-eared corner.

“This one is a bit tricky to draw just right,” Taki explained as the boys leaned in for a closer look. “So we’ll probably have to practice a few times. I’ve made one that looks alright, but of course I don’t really have a way to check if it works other than actually putting it up and waiting for something to happen, so…” She shrugged, and glanced inquisitively up at Natsume.

“I know barely anything about talismans and things like that.” Natsume admitted. “We’ll have to test it by using it.”

“Original plan it is then.” Taki said with a nod. She turned back to the book. “I was flipping though this earlier and it looks like there are some other useful spells in here as well… I’ll have to do a little more research, but I saw some seals and barriers and stuff. As long as they’re passive, I’m pretty sure even I can use these.”

“And me.” Tanuma said with a wry grin. “I don’t think I’ll have enough spiritual power to make anything big work.” He gestured to the rest of Taki’s stash. “What’s in those books?”

“More spells and protections, hopefully.” Taki said. “They’re for me to investigate later. Here, how about we take this back to the tea room? I can get us some snacks and we can practice drawing the talismans in better lighting.”

“Sure,” Tanuma agreed. With some effort, the three of them put away their mountain of books and papers, Taki collected a box of brushes and ink, and together they retreated from the library.

\--~~--

Natsume stared down at his latest talisman attempt, dismayed. Across from him, Tanuma shook with suppressed laughter, a hand over his mouth. Taki patted his shoulder sympathetically. 

“It took me years to learn how to draw these properly,” she reassured him. “You’ll get it. Tanuma, you can stop anytime.” Taki added, shooting him a dirty look.

Tanuma bent over the table, still shaking. Taki sighed. “You’re- you’re close.” She said, picking up Natsume’s brush. “Just straighten this- there’s a bit more curve here- these dots are tricky- aaand there.” She finished with a flourish. “It’s okay Natsume, just relax a little more. Once your brush strokes stop being jerky, it’ll be perfect.”

Carefully, Taki lifted the talisman up into the light for inspection. After a moment, she reluctantly placed it in an ever-growing heap of failed attempts at her side. Natsume sighed.

She added a few quick marks to her own paper, and slid it gently alongside three other complete talismans at the center of the table. “The book said we need at least four per household to use on the cardinal points. Eight is better, but I don’t think we’ll be getting that many done today.” She waved vaguely at the interior of the house. “There are already three functioning talismans here, so we only need to make five more. As long as we’re only making for the three of us.”

“I… I’d like to make a set for Kitamoto and Nishimura as well,” Natsume murmured, picking up a new slip of paper, “but I’m not sure how I’d get them to use it.”

“Maybe tomorrow we can put together a few for our school too.” Tanuma added. “That would be a good place to protect.”

“Good idea.” Taki said firmly, Natsume humming his agreement along side. “Let’s just get enough done for the us three today, since it’s already so late, and tomorrow we’ll meet up again to make the rest. And maybe a few different spells if I find anything practical.” Taki decided. “Now get back to work, the sun’ll be setting soon.”

Tanuma and Natsume studiously turned back to their task, and they all hunkered down for another attempt.

\--~~--

On his fourth try, Tanuma successfully replicated the design to Taki’s delight and Natsume’s despair, and they were able to add a sixth talisman to their collection. By the time they finished, darkness was beginning to creep over the house and Natsume had yet to make a passing copy, though Taki continued to assure him that he was close.

“I’m sorry,” Natsume said, defeated. “I wasn’t able to help at all.”

“It’s okay, really.” Taki promised. “Get some proper rest- there shouldn’t be any more youkai interference tonight, right?- and tomorrow you’ll get it. I’m the one with the most experience doing this kind of thing, and even I couldn’t draw it perfectly every time.”

“I shouldn’t have laughed so hard,” Tanuma said remorsefully, “I really have no leg to stand on.” He waved his two completed talismans. “Without Taki we would’ve been doomed.”

“It’s still two less that I had to do.” Taki said cheerfully.

Carefully stacking four freshly-dried talismans, Natsume got to his feet. “I should go.” He said. “Shigeru-san will be back soon if he isn’t home already, and I don’t want to make him worry.”

“Oh, of course!” Taki hopped to her feet, Tanuma following suit. “Thank you for letting us help you.” She said earnestly. “Oh, and don’t forget to change the bandages on your arm in the morning. We’ll see you tomorrow!”

“I-I won’t, thank you- I’m sorry you’ve gotten caught up in this mess.” Natsume said quietly.

“Natsume, I’ll say this as many times as I need to. Both of us are more than happy to be a part of your world. And when we know what’s going on, it makes us worry less, since we can help keep you safe.” Tanuma said with a grin. “I’ll see you at school.”

“R-right,” Natsume said, voice tight with emotion. “See you tomorrow.” His friends gave him a little wave as he shut the door behind him.

\--~~--

When Natsume stepped into the entryway of the Fujiwara home with an exhausted “I’m home”, he was greeted by a near-frantic Shigeru.

“Oh thank goodness you’re back, Takeshi.” He breathed. “Touko took a turn for the worse and I was going to get her some more medication, but I wanted to wait for you so she wouldn’t be alone. Then you didn’t show up…” He laughed weakly. “I’m sure I’m worrying too much, but with that little boy being kidnapped yesterday I’m afraid I may be becoming a little paranoid. I’ll only be gone a half an hour. Take care of Touko for me, will you?”

“Of course.” Natsume replied instantly. “You… you be careful too Shigeru-san.”

Shigeru’s gaze softened. “I will.” He ruffled Natsume’s hair for a moment as he passed, Natsume leaning into the touch- then he pulled on his shoes and hurried out into the icy dusk.

Natsume spent a long minute staring out after his foster father, worried fists clenching tight at sides. Then with no other choice, he turned back into the house, pausing only long enough to take off his coat and put down his schoolbag before rushing to Touko’s room. Impossibly, she had become even paler than when Natsume had seen her the previous day, and her breath rasped slightly in her throat. Lines of pain creased her brow. Hesitantly, Natsume laid a hand on her forehead- she was burning up.

Slumping back on his heels, Natsume allowed himself a moment of despair. The Devourer was still loose, Nyanko-Sensei was gone, Touko-san was sick, and he had managed to drag his friends into this dangerous situation. 

But no, he couldn’t give up now. He had the talismans Taki and Tanuma had worked so hard on, and he could help Touko-san right now. With a new sense of purpose, Natsume quietly left Touko’s room and returned to his schoolbag. He had a barrier to prepare.

Looking down at the four precious slips of paper in his hand, Natsume considered his options. He knew North faced the mountains, and East and West were easy enough by looking at the path of the sun. Knowing South naturally followed. The trick was going to be putting them in places that made the protection as strong as possible, while still keeping it out of sight of Shigeru-san’s possible home repairs and Touko-san’s meticulous cleaning.

After guiltily digging around in Shigeru’s office for a little while, Natsume able to locate some glue paste, and, materials in hand, he went to inspect the house. 

The first talisman went in the back of the least-used kitchen cupboard, hidden by a stack of old cups. He would just have to hope they could defeat the Devourer before Touko-san decided to use those dishes. He almost laughed at the apparent innocuous-ness of it. Here was a powerful youkai that could kill them all and possibly destroy the world, and Natsume was worried about Touko-san making a few too many cups of tea. He shook his head and moved on.

The next talisman found its place beneath a piece of decorative furniture at the end of the upstairs hall, where Natsume was fairly sure was only cleaned once a year or so. After a bit of a struggle, the third paper was pasted on the side-facing window wall behind his wardrobe. Natsume stared mournfully at the scuffed tatami where he’d been forced to drag the heavy furniture.

As for the fourth and final talisman… Natsume realized with some dismay that the best place would be somewhere of the back wall of Touko and Shigeru-san’s room- the room in which Touko-san was currently asleep. He would just have to be quick about it. Tentatively, Natsume crept back into Touko’s room, holding his breath to listen to her own ragged, but sleep-consistent breathing. He tiptoed to the back of the room. To his relief, there was a convenient location in plain sight, an old paper scroll that was pinned to the wall.

Cautiously, Natsume began to work the tacks out of the soft wood, wincing at every little scratch and squeak. Without pausing, he brushed glue over the talisman’s back, and pressed it to the wall. Some of the tension Natsume had been carrying began to bleed away as he finished his task, and he glanced over his shoulder to check on Touko-san.

“…Takashi…kun?” Natsume jolted as Touko’s weak voice reached his ears, worry and fear warring deep in his chest. Slowly, he turned. “H-hi Touko-san. How are you feeling?”

“Ah, well. I’ve been… better.” A chuckle, which quickly devolved into rough coughs. Natsume rushed to her side.

“Don’t talk Touko-san, just rest. Please.” Natsume whispered, hesitantly reaching out to brush a lock of hair out of her face.

Touko smiled gently. “All right.” She closed her eyes again. Natsume remained kneeling beside her until her breathing evened out once more. With a heavy heart, he got up to finish pushing the wall scrolls back into place, then left as quickly as he could.

Once the door had gently clacked shut, Natsume slid down the wall to the floor, feeling his fluttering heartbeat as he tried to relax. This would work; block the Devourer from harming Touko-san or Shigeru-san- it had to. Desperately, he wished Nyanko-Sensei was back. Natsume laughed weakly. He would even take a whining and demanding Sensei right now if it meant he had someone who knew what was going on.

From down the hall, Natsume heard the front door clatter open, and he leapt to his feet. Shigeru-san must have really hurried if he was back this early.

Natsume peered around the corner to view the genkan. “Welcome ba- Sensei!” He gasped, frozen in shock.

The lucky cat dragged himself up the entry step and stood on trembling legs. “I’m back, brat. I hope you have food ready.” Nyanko took a step toward Natsume, wavered, opened his mouth again- and collapsed in place.

With a yelp, Natsume rushed forward, kneeling beside his companion. “Sensei, what happened? Please wake up.” He received no response. Scooping the unconscious ayakashi up into his arms, Natsume warily scanned the outside, before closing the door and making a beeline for his room.

Gently, Natsume laid a limp Nyanko-Sensei down on a pillow and simply sat there, watching the lucky cat’s body rise and fall with each breath. It was far too reminiscent of the time Nyanko had been incapacitated by Matoba’s arrow, only this time Natsume had no treatment for whatever was wrong. Food, Sensei had mentioned food before he’d passed out. That was something Natsume could do. With a last glance at his bodyguard, Natsume left for the kitchen.

\--~~--

Shigeru returned while Natsume was in the middle another stirfry (the only meal he trusted himself to cook properly), and after a quick greeting to Natsume, went straight to Touko.

Their dinner together was mostly silent. Shigeru inquired about Natsume’s day, which of course Natsume couldn’t say much about. “It was fine.” He said with a smile, eyes closed. A familiar strand of guilt twisted in his gut. It was always easier to lie when they couldn’t see his eyes- and he couldn’t see theirs. 

“You seemed quite exhausted this morning… you made it though class alright?” Shigeru asked.

“Mmhm. I… I have good friends.” Natsume murmured, smile softening.

“I’m glad.” A pause. “You know, I don’t think I’ve seen Nyangoro all day today.”

“Ah, he came back not too long ago. He’s asleep right now.” Natsume revealed carefully. “I’ll bring him some food after we’re done.” Shigeru nodded. They both went back to eating.

As they washed and dried their few dishes, Shigeru spoke up again. “I mentioned earlier that another child was kidnapped last night… though I suppose you heard about that already?”

“Yeah, some of the kids at school were talking about it.” _And a youkai last night._

“Right, well. If the police weren’t sure it was a kidnapping before, they’re certain now. I hope they find the culprit soon.” Shigeru sighed. “I heard at work that a detective is being called in, so thank goodness for that.”

Natsume shifted uncomfortably. He knew that the police wouldn’t find anything. It hurt to know who was taking these kids but not doing anything about it. Even if he had every reason to wait.

“I know I’ve said it already, but please be careful when you’re out and about, Takashi. See if you can walk with your friends to and from school.”

“…I’ll ask them.” Natsume said quietly.

A warm hand landed on Natsume’s shoulder, but when Natsume turned in surprise, Shigeru only smiled went to put the final dish away. “I’m going to stay with Touko for the rest of the night, but don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything.” Shigeru informed him. “Sleep well Takashi.”

“O-okay. Goodnight, Shigeru-san.”

With a bowl of leftover stirfry, Natsume climbed the stairs back to his bedroom. “Sensei, are you awake yet?”

A snorting snore escaped the lucky cat’s mouth as his sleep bubble popped. “Ugh, this is the worst.” He complained sleepily, slowly stretching out.

“I have some food here if you want.” Natsume said, relieved. “Sensei… what happened to you?”

Nyanko grunted, mouth already full of stirfry. “Now isn’t that a story. And a disaster. And all the trouble I was trying to avoid.” He flopped down with a sigh. “You’d better get comfortable.”

 

\--~~--

 

When Nyanko finished his tale, there was a long silence. “So… Sarigi-san and Meishime-san did fail.” Natsume summarized. 

“Uh-huh.”

“And you got hurt, _hundreds_ of youkai in Yatsuhara have been destroyed, the Devourer is going to keep taking humans for- for their _souls_ , and everything is awful?”

“Yup.” Nyanko drawled.

“Oh.”

“’Oh’ is right.” Nyanko snorted. “I don’t know what happened to Misuzu, the Lady, or Sarigi. Honestly, I don’t know if even he could’ve survived that close to the explosion. I doubt Meishime can actually die the same way other youkai do, given her god status, and Misuzu’s probably in the same state I am. Anyway, our best bet to fixing all this is going to be finding the two that tried to seal the Devourer. As soon as possible. Sarigi only told me enough to get me off his back last night, nothing on how to actually fight the Devourer. We’ll need him to tell us everything if we want even a chance at defeating it. Frankly we might not win even if he does tell us.” Nyanko said with bluntly. 

Natsume stared bleakly at him.

“But enough of that for now, what did you do to this house? I feel a new protective layer.”

“Oh good, it’s working.” Natsume breathed.

“What is?” Nyanko said impatiently.

“Taki and Tanuma made some talismans for us that were supposed to block the Devourer’s ability to steal energy from a household, but we weren’t sure they were going to work.” Natsume explained. “I’m glad they are.”

“Huh. Well it looks like that girl did something useful for once.” Nyanko said, sounding mildly impressed.

“Sensei!” Natsume reprimanded.

Nyanko stuck out his tongue.

Natsume sighed. “I guess the earliest we can look for Sarigi and Meishime-san would be early tomorrow morning before school. _Really_ early.”

“Agh,” Nyanko muttered, looking torn. “Fine, that’ll have to do. You’d better set your alarm clock.”

Natsume groaned and went for his futon. He paused as a thought crossed his mind. “Oh, by the way,”

“Yeah?”

“What did you mean when you said Meishime-san’s gift would be useful?”

Nyanko-Sensei sighed and trotted over to the low table where said gift sat innocently. “Exactly what it sounds like. The Devourer is probably one of the strongest ayakashi out there. If we’re going to fight it, you’re going to need more power, and this-“ He waved a paw at the vial. “Will give it to you.”

Natsume blinked, then edged away from the table. “It’s that... dangerous?”

“I suppose that’s one way to look at it.” Nyanko scoffed after a beat. “Though of course you’d be practically the only one to see it that way. But yes, I think we need to keep it handy. It looks like there might even be enough in here for two users, so if you ever need more… assistance from me…” He leered.

“Now you’re definitely not getting any.” Natsume said, gingerly picking up the vial and moving it safely to the back of the shelf beside him. Nyanko sputtered his outrage.

“Goodnight, Sensei.” Natsume clicked off the light and laid back on his freshly made futon. There was a long pause.

“’Night, brat.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried my hand at [Sarigi](https://www.deviantart.com/stormfen/art/Sarigi-800754710) if anyone wants to cry over my lack of art skills


End file.
